WORLD OF DARKNESS: AN ORGANIZED CRIME SOURCEBOOK FOR THE WorLD OF DARKNESS®By Ari Marmell, Matthew McFarland andC.A.Suleiman ‘TABLEOP CONTENTS ICrenrrs Written by: Ari Marmell, Matthew McFarland and CA. Suleiman, World of Darkness created by Mark Reine Fagen Fiction by: Ed Hall Storyteller Game System Design: Mark Rein Hagen Developed by Justin Achill Béitor: Ed Hal Art Director: Richard Thomas Layout 6 Graphic Design: Kieran Yanner Interior Art Andy Trabbod, Mike Danza, Kitk Van Wormer and Kieran Yanner Front Cover Art: Mike Danza Back Cover Arts Kirk Van Wormer © 2002 White Wolf Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the written permission of the publisher is expressly forbidden, except for the purposes of reviews and for blank character sheets, which may be reproduced for personal use only. 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Check out White Wolf online at hrp:/fwww.white-wolfcom; alt games.whitewolf and rec.games.tp storyteller 1664 Liton Drive ‘lone Mountain, GA 30083 OM PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. ‘WORLDOP DARKNESS: MAFIATableofContents SouLoauy Inrropucrion: Tus THING OF Ours Carrer one: A DistincuisHep History Cxaprer Two: Mane MENIN A WorLD oF DARKNESS CHAPTERTHREE: CHARACTER CREATION CHAPTER FOUR: THE VEIL OF SECRETS AND Lies CHAPTERFIVE: STORYTELLING » a ad ‘TABLEOF CONTENTSSTC aT What a world ehis is, What a coneh, gedless garden of tsetse we Levin. Cristina, Cristina, yoncan't dia onme His tomy, There'd only be one of ws Left. Ets ts mnfate! fon were ireoer anything bat goed, but t's Lhe lige mas good le yon jus s¢ ou) know ho ara ashes taste 2 don't knaw tp yon can hear he. The Doctors, they told me a tath to you, that.afamiliarecice might bring yon ont of his this slecp that'ss0 clese to Death SoD m speaking te you now the fem you ake) me tothe Last tne we san each ther. remember ha irse words yon said Lo me tha day after se many years. Asif D contd forget them! on said, This is America Emits, Speake English to me Then you said, (Jus Don't expect me to say anything back. That was right before you called me a killer My brothers akaller, athieh ab avhoramaster. Chose were your exact nerds “The merdethad hurtame marae than when 5 got shot, worse than tha times D got stabbed. Ufo cnt ok my hear that ay. foment Ione and neocsknant fon neve#nadersteed hy D0 th things D had to 2 Did bald eo hasp my amilyatioeAnd the only thanks yon coer gave me was tocnt me appar, to ttt me that the one brother et had afin the earl ons Dead to yor, fon made me feel ke “Dy had tnoented conetey leet Like my sont had withered area “D7tL tall you where we al wontd e if D had Led thts fe fine. Dntha gromndwith/ama and Papa that'swhere! Jon, ine, Pietro, all Dead, all Long dea?! oof ta ptr a ny. fe hag wontde bean beter toe. Di hat what yon thenght? DI you think ‘hati we hadn't Lived, al che people rhe supfered, whe 21d of mand 2 yon think he Lies would hace been beter somehow? Or (Longer? Lie can't mork that may, Life i single, tigers har? ino mattan what yon 26: Why couldn't yon see that? LOhy couldn't Paiiiaethae? People whe Don't fight hard enough inchs lige Secome sepptng-Ttones for the ones whe Do, Peeple who neser gure ont which are the right frLandatohave dink ont of sgh Paapa never lemon hese sens. But Dike he wenl2n't and that shy D Loerhen D222, hat seas hard for mereasn being lanay fram Mama of PapassOr Platre, Dt was leacing you Gehind. Leasing yon mas lke tanolng me, Like ey body Let heme cand iy sud stayed there "AULD knaw or sve the night D ran anay mas if D stage, he only Ged that was ahead was us getting to Be together. D never tld anyone bore, but the firs decent night's sleep D can emanier was that night Dian tay, D hated tha hens. De was always ced, and the spiders! Spiders are the Deeil’s finger, D'm certain eh te Mestrishtsin that honse D’2 wake wp tivo 00 hve tts, sure that something had been crmvling on mel the Dark, Nights D managed to sleep cheongh, O nied taream ‘hat fat spider nas oping down toward my fac Tha rs night shontd have been tered. Dsleptin a arm D had maven sn jst becanse it had a solid 10eh, Not Like the nee had, The war hadn't ben ooer Long chen, s0 Lats of places vvvvvVvVvVvvvVVYV|Evvvyvyivivevy Vv WORLD OF DARKNESS:MAPTAmare Deserted. A Lo of the farmbenses were justiracks, though, 90 slept tn baons tke that ome while D headed south to find semeplace warmer than home, Dveonnd up in Sicilia because D made freidin Naples. A 4602 end he thonad ont tebe. a man named Lucania, An) he seas the right friend te make. He told me to gote Stily and ‘mention his name to a man there “He 2d the same forthe Americans. When the Attias Landed herein 43, the English andthe Canadians Wed by the thousands The Americans ook a different rente, though an) barely had to tire a shot. Thanks te Lucania, the Sicilians knew they were coming. When peopte sam thatthe Amerleans’ tanks had banners swith big" in gold, the landers knew these soldiers were just passing throngh om thelr may te hand Mussolini his ass. And that sade them very fendly, White th vest of Dtaty mas falling tn step with D1 Dace, the Staittans were telling him tego bite his wn ramp. He Ndn ike chat. He tied to wipe ont all these old Saandues hiding inthe hits ther, Ufou keno who won that battle Aucanta hone hire it wonld end, 20, 10 he wanted tobe folend oh the United States. A patriot. An ally. He anderson dhe Importance of friends, By being a good friend, he'laas able do” constnce th Americans tlt hint 0 of path aftr the mar a sed him heme: Te Naples, anyway. Close enough theme, And that's where D suet him, Hove D met Lucania, that was a thing in itself. Eecry— ts someone there? Nase? norybedy as hungry ales the war, Even se, lana child at the Noor at sunset held the hey to mest people's hearts back then Ths D teamed by accident, Dtoaccled by ay asked farmers or seater and get feed. Late one afternoon lt tuned cool 18 when sava farmhouse D mated up and asked D could narm nels ‘tn her barn. The comple whe ioe) hehe Looked ateath other. and for a moment D thenght 2 had made Then the smoman put he hands on my fee ad pulled me to her. Didn't realize she mas crying unitt her tears began to fall om my check At first thonghe that thet? roef mast Leak the way ours 219! They fed me. They gaveme dnacerceat thatweas too hig and 20 marm forthe season. D knaw D2 ntt¥ ton the rand, though. een then; D knew D canldn's stay with these people, They reminded me 0 much of Mamaand Papa, Not beanse they were ‘tad, but becanse they alse seamed beatin, Defeated. Someuhave se, Dene, wava place not made op los. D jase had to finde ‘The farmer and hsseife offered me a bed te sleep tn that 4 eur father often said to me, What frightens yon, boy? Atmays Drcontd ing A ghest, Papa, Ad he told me, Done fear ghosts, id, theg mean ns na har, Thay are merely last and need to be ‘ebyed atong thee way, Apes there, tn my path, stood bog — or the shape oa boy litte calber than D was. But he wasn't ald there. D cid ‘He hrongh hm te the trees a tha yoadide. ight before me stood phase. D thenght of Papa's words and D told to sep azenn? ‘Kim but again he Blocked my way, D fete a seream inside me bat 2 Dw cmant ta bring the farmer and is miferunnng. Decided Dihad to wath through this phantom, but heh D tid D became ven mere frightened! The ghost seemed angry then. He epened hts had toward sme, My rst chonght as that D should pay him erehat ood D> ‘alert the farmbense— but Dcontdn'timagine hatase ghost ‘2nld hae for money, which D eas withent, anyway. D tooked Down at my cupey hands then at tts angry snl betncen me and Havend And then D nen. Dleoksd 2own again, nota myhands but atthe ens of the coat that ales thet. The cot had team his when he Lined, D nas sare. D took off and lt ie fale Sehind mt Dmatched che hese the whol time, athe at felk on the gronnd, the Dead boy moved ou of my wy D tack fom steps straight ahd, but wlth each ane my fear heated inte something ‘lst: What 22 he néed a cont fer? Dt couldn't arms him, D figured. D twmed and sam he mas sting en the coat. Oran back and snatched itxp with one hand. then D ‘nomad again and ran $07 the road. D ald the cont up hgh tke 4 flag. Behind me, D heard a sound ihe nothing thse coon D ‘honght the Deal himself eas behind me anidif D stowed enn at ld or even tnrmed to (ook he would alton me whele! D dont remember when D stepped running, bat once D212 Dhadne wind nme at atl, D dropped my harden’ kneesinthe mide ofthe 100), D could barely see the farmhense inthe Distance, and thse ‘nase sign ofthe dead boy atall. Denthnom ho tong Datayed ere be hen D thought abont seeping, D knew Dreontdn tbe ding any that night. 50 3 walked 2 didn't rest antl almost daybreak, D semen thinking ‘ght before dann how comertable the flat yok infront of me ached. Than D nas fading asleep ontop of te Deamsthave been midday when Drckanp withan American slQLet sanding ver me. The stm thas behinds hed, 12D senlda't se hs face and D nas eld. The gan ane) ne to conat wlth hive D919 becanse Dryas sich of wathing, andD saw aight, D accepted because D 0n'twant te offend them. Before there was another American in a teach, D climbed tide tt sath they could entes their own bedveem, théigh, D was ont the window And headed back to the road. Adhere in the farmiey’s yard, Dearne) that our father 32 {met held allothe tenths tn the world. When D would anaken seaming fem fear of spider in the Dark but athamed lo nde them. D felt asleep again. And at nighifat, again the soldier smoke me up, ‘They had brought me te a depot fulted with children, Ot Looked tthe a prison to me, e8en though seme of the boys were playing ball inthe yard, Distayed there for exactly three days, three of the morse Days of my lige They moved me from place vvvvvyvvVVvVVYVYVYVVYW®fV¥VYWV®YW¥¥VYSYi¥hiéiéRéSé#Y PROLOGUESOLILOOUEco place, asked ib ynestions that made ne sense, tock amay my clothes, cooeted mi with white powder, washed me, gave me nen clothes, tack them back, vetuoned the old clothes... D hated ‘hat place And then they asked me where D was trying to ge and 21D nom tng family os alive “And 2 knew that ths was iy ticket. Thay thought D might be some kindof orphan! They showed me a map. D pointed ata pplaceonthe cenit sonch but not tor far south, D remember/Mama alaays saying how Southerners ate with their hands, chat chey sed forks for back scratches. That was how 2 chose Napet Naples was nothing ike D imagined 1 wonld be. There swcte Amertcans allover, Including at the camp fer “Meplaccd ‘persons hey prt me in, Theg made my pletareand peste itneat ‘tha gates, The idea was that while D waited my turn tebe taken in search of my amily, maybe they wontd come cha and see my face, D hese D would be as 010 as Pape before that happened My fae might there D escaped ‘They meven'e trying hard to heey the kids inside, afte al itth the Aweticans everywhere, thengh, the trick was in not gutting brought back. DYER wonld have te heep moving, D Jone dens tine to find sme money The next mining, D looked for someeme with more money han he meede2.D fond him stkingontsde at a cafe. As soon as Disam hin; 2 hn he was what Dhad been Looking er. He sat ‘here tn his cream-colored sntt Like he ons king, jst matching the smarld turn, The ay he Looked at everybody arcnnd him said, contd ap the wd rem tarning ip Danted to. Dele bad hat Dronld have to seal oo him, But 9 knew D contd ot D iontched hin from am alley acsess the street. He drank Affed ard smolad ciganets, but he never got np. The sun got ‘ghar, and he took offs suit coat, Hee 2riped it coer the back chanother hair, Fanally,hestoedup and nated insidethe caf “Thad was hin D cress the steak. Dmaeed between the tables ois and let my hp catch his coat which the man had Left bohm Deel and D grabbed i before could hitch gronnd. White D seas bent over, my coat hung open and hid my hands. Dscarched all fis pockets fast, ut there mas no money. © put his coat back as had bean and started wath avay. And ont of the corner my eye, D sam the man watching me from inside the caf He calted ont to me. Ki, he said, you looking for this He ‘hata np abank note that was worth more han all. che money D had coer seen pass thtengh Papa'shands, Droent te hi, ani he sad, That's what D thought He asked memgname. D told hin, anda told mete call him Mr Lucky, Haasked mel Droanteda job. Dsaid. fis. He pnt ‘e bank noteon he baran? wrote something ont. Than he folded np. He stack onthishand tothe man behind the bar, ad che man ‘WORLD OF DARKNESS MAFIA__A_A__A__A AA AAA A_A_A_A_A_A_4 a 4 4 4 1 handed hn another bank note. He held up anetein each hand and sad, Tha gery to Siety eaves n an hent, Be on it This wilt pay your way. He handed me the nnfel0ed bank note, andthe he fast sat here, D asked him what he as waiting for and he said, Das seating toseethyou'Dran anay nth he money. D gucssyonreally Do seant job. Then he said, When you get te Palerme, ash sangbedg where to find Don Diasint, He held onthe fel2ED note and satd, Guce Kim hts and tlt Rn Mo, cy ene yon And that washow Lucky Luctane answered mi prayer. Thanks thin, D mas able to send money home te heep yon ‘ard Mama and Papa and Dutee fed. Ali. 2 bet you never seondered how Papa kepe turning a profit onsngar bests while the pee felthroughche oor By he time Drs eightsen theyre areming bets om the moon! (fou contDn't glee thom away! Pap 2a’ cel yon, hough: Papa dn’ tll anybody, e:Zepe Diate He eto Pietro eveything, and sll enn brchen turned ont to be afoot. Preerecame te Silly once, and 2s you knew why? Le preach communism! What was he thinking? This was early tw the Fie, and the Siettans had been killing Communit! or ears by then! O hand fr another o the Don's Lentenants hat seme Northerner was asking about me atthe ecks. D tok some amen with me to see what was ging on, anid D found eur brother latking Mayaist trash te stenderes. D had the men with me ge mack Kin the month and bring hs ko me. Deer Rt hs head ‘en the gronnd and was on cold shan hay cared him in. When he smoke np, D said, Halle big brother, fon Looking for me? He arted to ery, so D had t ska hina, He sad he was glad tose sme aioe. D said, Ufon better be, bicanse th only Peason you've atin nv 1s Because D am, Because D'm a cote family man, Disaid. D asked hn tf he her what happened to Commanlats dn Sietly and he sald, No, what are you tathing abont? SiD shone) hin That night, D took hn te the hense of 4 man named Ale Guapdat. Giardint had Deserted from the Eehiepian mar in 41 and brough back a tele hatf-bree) baby sith him. Once he stepped being a Fascist he started getting deny with Kart Mare, bit he kepe to Kimsel. For a white ‘Tha he acelin fiers, Digan hey 2 bon Alde's sn was/a an baby, Te tl the truth, Enno looked like ‘ath he pape tn Selly to me 0D dnt blame cham for hat. Marxism, though... Angoay Meer Ado's friends arrived, we iched down thadoor We bat them bloody al f thom. Pietro begged os tostep, se Decked around for something tense on AD esides my ists. Onthe table masa bo of wanght iron filigree ike for fancy sais vlling D sad to Plate, Ufon asked me step, so, okay, Deon tht him with my hands anymore. Then D snatched np this place of on and beat ADD wlth Ul 1 broke Gout bother srezmed ard Babberd ihe woman. Ennte ait hase, but D figured somebody needed ¢o beta ane piece to bandage up the 102s, D bet they were never reer. We dragged thom ontside and st fire tothe hense. The tmportint hing, afterall, wast make Pietro understand how badly he could get burned. And that D conlan't protect him anymore. De wasn't smorth kling them or that Den tehink there meren people ln Stetly who neded killing, hough Aue he Spinets, Mama must have had che Spinatets tn ‘mind whenece? she alka about hse anful Sentherners ere, Don ‘Dessind sent me fh Giorgia Spinets to lam th bsiness,And Gorge put me to work helping his et sons harvest bid traps Mon nevet sve anything la this, Cristina! They nid to te wp ‘gnicklime and scat it om toe Limbs yp in the hills, Later, they? came back and dozens of birds montd be stuck to the limb. Some swontd be hanging Like font exhausted on Dend from trying to escape: And they 22 this Day after Day. D remember noticing one 2ay that here had been fever br2sinthe traps. Dasked Guancarl, Grates obese boy, what they world Do when Silly 14H ont of Sith Anda nghed at me. He said the shy was ful of birds, that Yow cenld naier catch them all een thengh D was tile Young, Dhnew Deas tathing toa feel,’The onby thing this world has in endtess supply, D knoe aw, ts foots andsocak pespte, Upon told me the Lastddme we spoke ‘hat D poisn children mith ngs. Children are accenntable hor thee actions, to, you know, Better to Lase the touly foolish ones afore cheyean become foolish adults and dlee cars. Or on guns ‘Ard yon couldn't make money off drugs inet fer weak people 1whd can't stand being trampled by people of srength After Giancarte laughed at me, D never spoke abont 602s again: But he remembered what D said, and when things got antes bad, he blamed me! They at 2d. Guorge beat them ngolarightidP torches nll Takonk hings afd of what might happen i Don Vizsint found ont. Glancasle and his brothers, chongh, they? pass it along, yon see. They only knee enangh to ean theie father. Albof them shenld hace been apyaid ohme. Dn the hills not far fim the Spinatis' hte was a cave swhere Gamcarte Liked ta meee the neighbor's Daughter for recre- ‘atton on Sandays. Denon ths becanse Dotlowadhim thene move han once. Dalnays mendered how anyone cond bese spl) as to (ge someplace that was sure co be ull oh snakes and worse. Pas, there wore rckslidés there all the time. One Sunday, D inter- ‘cepted he meighber gel and tad her Giancarte wanted to meat her 4m town instead, to bay her a cola. And off she went. Simple: Than D headed up inte the Nis and got abece the month of Gancarte's eave, Atong he came, and he disappeared inside. D ashe) a rock Down the slope and i picked up some friends on the seay. Al of adden, te s0as an anatanche, Dad to move fast, of Dionld have been part of th rock pile that buried Glancarte yvvvvvVvVyVYVVVVYVYYVV VY VY VY Vw PROLOGUESOLILOOUEThe neighbor giet never said a mor, as har as D know, becanse she Didn't want her father to know what she had been doing. Giorgio made a halfehearted efor to track Dvn hs missing sen, ‘but he seamed bo me more tnconventenced by the Lass of a pats of ‘ands than anyching else. Since D was the oldest after Glancarte, things changed a tthe once he ras gone. Pine and Cesare tried to Doublecteam me, nt withont Guancarto they woren’t np to the job. 2 know they mont) be son, though, 20 D began planning for that 2ay. 4 D had known then what D Learned tater, that Dow Dissint wanted O12 Atan Spinetté and his tle toadstool ant oh the ony, D— Ds someone there? Dea getting dark, Cristina, andy eyes arenctse good ne De sean atl kinds of shapes inthe shadoms Lately The city's lighting np Devon there. stth you tould see soith mes Everything was a test with men Uke Viesin, you hace te derstand, He manted to sce how much othe Splnetls D contd stemach and what D would 20 abont than, D diniehnon that at ‘the cme of course, By the time D tearmed the tenth, D had been theden's mest trnstedcntenant onthe istand fora tong time. By then, though, coeything abont Silly mademesad. Especially the Lack of birdiong, Naturally, ls went away withthe birds, And the Spinctes, on s0'D thonght atthe tame. Plas, cave were jankles cverychere. But the heroin nsss arn on to bey hey ta geting saroay, Dt eas around 1960, 9 think, and the big bsses sled epportunteg, Thoyvwantedtomake Patera the conduit for theit Deng trait, and they neeDED trnsted friends to ceersce Distetbution ontside Selly That's Kaw O got sent. to Besten, D wasn'ta bess, bok D Didn't have one tn tan, aither. D shared mutual respect with the ‘movers and shakers here. Ray Patriarca mas one, and s0 was Andrias Giooannt. Andreas lacks Uke Mephiste Kmselfe And ‘mich goed reason, toe. When thase two went after each other's family, D made ry clear that Droasnse allowed toplck ids. And eoerybedy was fine with that — espectally me — anti Cesare Spinctet showed np. D never gobo ask Cesare how he get ont of the hense the sight 2 see on fig Dad lacked fine and ts brcher tn ait bedroom and old Fergie was passed ont drank in is oon bedi He “had boon smoking, 10 te wasn thard to mate him look like the sontce othe te. The hardest parkioas setting myself en reco throm eff snaplcton, My back silt has the sears from that night. Kuck oe, 5 naves have to look at chem Ainoay, Cesare ateied in Beston as imported mnsce for he Patriarcas. The mamant D san hin, he sam me, and nothing seeded tobe sad. Hs tars wr an his face, and D watched thom non purple while he seared at mec Hard. D knew D went hase ‘WORLDOF DARKNESS MAFIA te hit hie Beira he ALLED me. And D knew D had te have clean hands whanit as dont; becanse Cesare by chen, masamade man, ast a8 D was, So Dientte Andreas, Ard Dade adeat. And he futfilled is end. And D sealed my own fate. The funny thing mas that all Andreas wanted tn return was lath: At fist, anyway, He insisted, hengh, that D neoer Leto fim, anda sworche wontd kor tp D coer 2D balioed him, to He asked ma abont the frst person D ever killa, and D ld him Hea asked me abont the firs woman Das ese with, and D tad hum thae, alse: One time, he asked me whether D had eer sen hest,andD ld hi the same story D fuse td you. He asked ame er proch, 10 D brought hm the coat. He seemed satisled by ‘hat and asked ip he contd keep it. Whe knows why? Like D said a's the Deott himself. D fron that no. ‘Thenight Andreas made good on hisend of eur bargain DU bovgee, ‘The restannant where D used comet Andreas had ish anks tale. Biggest ones in oven ontsde che Boston Agnarinn, One Manday, Andreas sald meat atone. D fnem the estan ‘rant would be closed, 40 Gee Cesare's number was ap 201s a Double-cress: Dade arrangements in case and headed ont, Andreas himself anncred the Door, and tk was jst in anid sme these. Than D save one of the agnartnns had a Black cootain tn front of ts Andreas seated asking me about Sewth America, ‘had-D ever been there, what 302 kore about rain forests and the animals that Lae tn thet. D mas nervous, xo nothing hereas saying made sense, What's going on, D sald. And he sald, Cesare ls gutting acglainted with my mow pets. He yanked aay the cenvtaingand there was Cesare inside tts aquarium No wate (ide jst soa game, ard Cesare and. And. Spiders. Cotstina, you neces sa such spiders Sieneratof them, Like tarantnlas, Bat big. Bigger than nd hand. Andreas was quict fon minute, then he stared at these ‘ings and said, Watch, hei polson only paratyaes him for a eee while. When he stares flailing aren they tt bite him again. Seon, ht have Lost enough bioed chat he won't move anymore:"Then he turned atennd and said, Where de you think gen’ve going? yD hadn't even veatizad at D had Been backing tomar the Door, D wanted ts Look aroay from these... monsters, bat D was caboatd to twon ng back to them. Than one of them moved, fast One mement ik mas in a corner atthe back of the agnartam,R® then tt nas on Cesane's leg. He was laying flat againseeht glass and Looking right ab me. And D cent't speaker wanted to scream, but nothing came ont. Next thing D knew, Andreas had sme by the back of the neck, with my face presed to glass. D nas looking right ab Cesare, watching hse Ye, Andreas said, This kstehat you wanted, ight? AU D contd think was that there was mothing but. place of glass betutin me and my worst nightmare, Hers than my worst nightmare Andreas told me that our Mat was changing, that D wont ave te perberm cata seoies from tine tine. And tha ip D 20m ike the neve dead, D contd juin Cesare tn the tank. And thatroas hoe D finatty got abou in he states, Nobody Anew, becanse if they 22 me and Andoeas wentd be Ded already, Df he can Me, D mean. For yeas all he acer asked to 2 as ged dof afd ‘incongentent people. Nobody O knew. Hall, J Voy e-think Andress knew half ef then, either. They mere facets for ‘ontslDer an or members of Andreas’ family. D car-bambed some ‘arms Beater named Carcassionebecanse Andreas said is cous 21m lke che guy's catogne, Mere of what Daliiags 22, in thar words. Se D2ian'thave a real problem with this deal, Until tue ‘ights age, chen Andreas asked me to htt your son, Satoatere D ald him he had made a mistake, that Saloatere had 200d 4m the Do Rcer feeds, Andreas said the mistake was mine, and fe handed me a photograph. he young man in the picture ‘Heltobled he bey D remanaberd fr0m phates atonnd your apa ment, Daskedhin, Why ma can't you get somebody tse for this? Ne, he sald, Dean't And Drant you to dato see i you've sl 1p (the 40. That's ehat he ind Se Dshiwedhio that Oras. D stab Andveashronghthe heart ith a seitéhbtade Aad he ust Leeda the nif, No te he oat surptae, 0 ven hehe was hurt, Like he eas 1a2. Then he sid, D ted th Hirt. Please leave new, (Just like that, And D san, And D wontd hace kept running tf D hadn't found ont you are here atthe haspilal,.So here Diam Waiting bor Who's there? 2 can see you! Come ont! Desnt Dagon! Upon can't tlh nant the coat after alt hese Hears, can You D Yon'thave Ue. Andreas — Andreassen You hare BOW'he? Halt, Dhepe you can ly, Secanse that's the anty ay gon ll catch me you little bastard Co PROLOGUESOLILOONEarr are ere naa tern aaa tagging tpt a | q © A Ny WY Q (| : | Y a0 — La vvvyyvvvpvrvwyywesé#pei+y+:Y,i.-ViOYSOY ean voy oY 10" WORLDOPDARKNESS: MAFIA aaar back as I can r Henry Hill, G las Iv’samodern romantic notion, the popular consid ation of the Mafia gangster, especially Hollywood heyday. Clad in a tailored black suit, hand ir his pocket clutching hidden pistol, sharingdinner with pite of his Brooklyn accent and checkered past — it’s an icon that lives in our cultural memory. Japper Don Corleone of The Godfather to {ward G. Robinson's pinch-faced Joe Krozac, pop cul ture has given us indelible images of organized crime nthe idiom ofthe The truth of the matter, however, isthat our popu ar image isn't very close to the real world’s truth. Little f the glamour weascribe to gangsters has much validity in the modern Cosa Nostra. In the re world, the Mafia ime, desiccated from the insidelott acefully has crumbled o and refusing to age In the World of Darkness, however, the Mafia never really outgrew its heyday. Sure, it’s suffered inter nal problems, but those are the conflicts great stories are nember, I always wanted to be a gangster built from. Crime and Vampire have always gone hand in hand, mostly because they're both shadow societies that exist just below the surface of the mortal world. In asett nntly ing to have to sooner or later, they're ¢ take blood without asking. Leaving aside the question of whether this is theft, rape or some other crime, the factis thatit'sa crime, effectively lumping the Kindred in with other sundry 5 world in wh different from the willworker's. That's justin the imple mentation, however, as the practice is largely the same After all, both the gangster and the mage want to effect their wills on the world — whether by magic or brute force is a question best left for the moment. Other supernatural elements, too, overlap with the secrecy of the Mob, from wiseguy Glass Walker werewolves to the ghosts of hit victims and even rarer things. mbags. It’s the same shadow- fh mages exist, only the mafigso's Way is vvvvvrvyrvvygwvpg¢wyvi_vi_,_iYS VOY INTRODUCTION: THISTHINGOF OURSOrganized crime, it must be noted, rises to the top of the criminal hierarchy. These aren’t petty stick-up men, deranged murderers or common street pushers. Even when they are such base creeps, their connection 10 thé greater network gives them a greater value to a story. Mafia culture as a good mirror for supernatural culture: It's made up of individuals, but those individu- als contribute something to a greater ideal. Whether they're refined dons adored by the public John Gotti was beloved by his neighborhood, and he threw vast block parties) or murderous fiends in the organization's employ (did even Albert Anastasia’s own mother love him?), they're almost part of a pantheon, players in a secret drama that plays out nightly. Just like the more- than-mortal denizens of the World of Darkness. Again, World of Darkness: Mafia presents a very romanticized version of the Mafia, and it does so with abandon. In the real world, the Mafia’ all but in the shitter. The families have fractured and decayed, and the omerta code of honor it once held hasn't changed with the times. The Sicilian Mob is no longer as relevantas the triadsnd tongs, and the Russian Mob is ‘more brutal tonighti But we don't care about that and ‘won't mention it much — we're going to assume that the Mafia heyday'that ended around 1971 never really drew toa close, We play more to the icon and the myth in this book than to facts, and so should you in your stories. In doing research, this book's writers have come up with some pretty sad details. You'll see Vincent the Chin staggering around the neighborhood in his bath- robe, pretending to be insane. You'll see nepotism a its worstywith John Gorti, Jr. being handed the reins of the ‘most visible crime family in the world. To hell with all this. This book accepts them as fact but also sweeps their gravity under the rug. For the sake of the story, they still happened, but they're footnotes in the con? tinuing legacy of Carlo Gambino, Joe Masseria, Bugsy Siegel, Lucky Luciano, Sam Giancana and all the rest. Ie’ still an era of Frank Sinatra songs, Marlon Brando imagery, Mario Puzo bombast and governors shaking hands with dons. Omerta still exists; i's not a bufich of cowboys ripping each other off, stupid and criminal only because they don’t know anything else: Yes, it’s unrealistic, but it’s an icon Although it may be fun tostorytell an on-the-ropes Mafia chronicle, it's not so fun to doom the effort withthe fact that ther organization is no longer relevant/Play to the arche- types; play co the myth. Note the ttle of the bookgas well. Our focus here is unrepentantly on the Maffa. You'll find mentioned other avenues of organidéd crime, sufé, but only in the ‘WORLDOPDARKNESS:MAFIA context of the Sicilian Mob. We don’t minimize the effect of those other cultures’ criminal contributions, but we admittedly focus (and, where necessary embel- lish) upon the Italian incarnation. Theme and Mood As part of our Year of the Damned, this book's focus is on compromise. When you join the Mob, you make yourself and your family comfortable, but it’s at the expense of breaking the rules. You take what you want, but in doingso, you've placed yourself outside the system. It’s the Devil’s deal in a different context — whereas a witch might make a pact with the Devil for power, the mobster makes a deal with the criminal/ mortal underworld for his. Look at Tony Soprano from The Sopranos or Henty Hill from Goodfellas. These are guys who put their family first and that’s what got them involved in the Mob in the first place. It’s also their undoing — their damnation — hecause the Mob de- mands more of them than they're able to provide safely and still Look out for what put them there initially. Consider the morality of it all: How far is too far? At what price do success, power, wealth and comfort come toa gangster? Obviously, this will vary by the character in question, but, hey, that’s why Humanity and Paths of Enlightenment are scales of 10 and not binary condi- tions. Morality is forever gray in the World of Darkness. For mood, keep the players on their toes, but it should be more suspenseful than horrific. As always, in the World of Darkness, we shouldn't trust anyone, but this time, its not because they want to drink our blood (necessarily, though the Kindred are present...). It's because we stand in the path to their success. Many of the story elements ill remain the same, butit’sthe type of story we're telling that's different. Ir's all tied to the ‘World of Darkness, but it’s important to know that we can use the horror setting to focus on other genres, How to Use This Book Asa reference volume for both players and Story- tellers, World of Darkness: Mafia works as an idea crucible, bothaféir characters as well asplots. We've gone out of@ur way not to include any earth-quaking supefplots in the interestsofleaving the introduction of Organized crime to the Storyteller. That is to say, we ‘haven't installed our own crime bosses in certain cities as we would a sept of Garou or chantry of mages. We've done ourreal-world act-checkingandused those names where appropriate, but that's just one more step you don’t have to do in the name of historical accuracy. Who loves ya, baby?A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_ A 4 A A Chapter One isa concise look at the history of “this thing of ours," from its suspected Old World origins to the modern nights. It's an account largely free from supernatural influence, but as always in the World of Darkness, whether that’s accurate or simply the hall- mark of supernatural forces very skilled at hiding themselves is a question for your troupe to explore. The modus operandi of the Mafia is the subject of Chapter Two, explainingnot only the mundane opera- tions of La Cosa Nostra but also the unique nature ofits relationship with the supernatural. Character creation and Trait considerations con- stitute Chapter Three. This section includes an abbreviated guideline for creating mortal characters as well as suggestions for using existing Traits outsidé the context of vampires, werewolves and the sundry other night-fiends of the world. ‘Chapter Four examines the presence of the Mafia ‘on a geographical basis, with emphasis on North America. The organization's hold isnot as global as one might think, and with particularattention to the World of Darkness, the Mob is most active in specific places. Storytelling advice rounds out the book in Chapter Five, with special focus on adapting the Mafia genre to the horror setting (as discussed above). Broadly useful, this chapter should give direction to any Storyteller, whether she’s building an organized crime chronicle from the ground up or introducing the Mobas anally or rival into an existing chronicle INTRODUCTION: THISTHINGOF OURS at athPTT a YY ld apter One: A Distinguished History Sicilian thing that's bee There would be no way, Michael, no way you could ever forgive me. Not with this going on for two thousand years! Kay Corleone, The Godfather: Part I Anyway, continuing from my last letter, I'm still looking into it. Call it what you want — La Cosa Nostra, the Mafia, the Mob, the Syndicate — it’s diverse and it goes back a long time, probably centuries. Since the noble, decent lawmen of America insisted that it didn’t exist for quite a long time, and since I'm not exactly a historian, it’s difficult to do anything but offer conjecture on the origins of the Mafia. But conjecture I will Incidentally, I received your last letter, and I'm choosing to ignore your request. I know that he’s nearby, and I don’t disagree that he might well deserve the Good Death. That's nor the issue. It's your responsibility, and I’m not a damned hitman. OK?Now, with that unpleasantness out of the way, ler’s talk Sicily OurThing The term “Mafia” didn’t come to refer to d crime until the 20th century. As to its origins, I've heard a few explanations. One is that the word dates from a French invasion of Italy in 1282. Supposedly, “Mafia” isan acronym for “morte alla Francia Italia anela” — “death to the French is Italy’sery.” Another, also referring tothat invasion, isabit more romantic. [tholds that a French soldier raped a Palermo girl on her wedding day, and that the citizens rose up and murdered a French troop. The fever spread, with the revolt’s battle cry stemming from the poor girl's mother running through streets shouting “ma fia” or “my daughter.” I'mnotsure I buy that one, but mobster Joe Bonanno espouses it in his autobiography rvvvVVYVVVVVVWVY Viv V Vqgyourey, V (CHAPTER ONE: A DISTINGUISHED HISTORY 7 5An explanationithat makes a bit more sense is that “Mafia” comes from an Arabic word meaning “refuge.” Centuries ago, Sicilian peagants, under oppressive occupation by Atabs, took refuge in the hillsand with each other. They came to realizethat reporting difficulties between themto the authorities was a bad idea. Disputes between Sicilians should remain between Sicilians, and a kind of “underground justice” emerged. THis was the beginning of omerta, the vow of silence on pain of deathithat members of the Mafia would swear (and break) inlater years. In away, you could see itas an attempt at aiself-ruling body; the Sicilian people governed themselves without involving the actual government. A kind of un-civil disobedience, right? But Sicily was a prime target for invaders. Normans, Arabs, Spanish, Germans, Greeks — for whatever reasons, all ofthem visited the island. ‘And each time, the need for unification emerged. Eventually, that need crystallized in the form of a secret society, organized much like a family, with a “don® in charge of the society in each village, and the “don of all dons,” or what later generations would callicapo di tutti capi or “boss of all bosses,” in Palermo: The problem, of course, with making any kind of speculation about a secret society is that, if said society is atall sticcessful, you run into secrets. It’s therefore difficult to trace the Mafia from its beginnings as a kind of anti-establishment force to the wealthy and shadowy organization it became. However, a few key points in its development are common knowledge. In the 1700s, “Black Hand notes” appeared. Most of usare familiar with the notion of protection, though I personally despise the euphemism. Some representative of the Mob handed a wealthy citizen anote with a polite request for a sum of money, lest the citizen find himself the victim of beatings, robbery, bombings, etc. A mugging with formal dressing — and that kind of farce, thugs under a mask of respectability, continued on even into modern times. But I digress. When the Mob was still handing out Black Hand notes, at least they were being surreptitious. In 1876, centuries after Sicilian peasants had need of the organization for refuge, Don Raffaele Palizzolo maneuvered his way into political office by literally forcing voters — at gunpoint — to vote for him. Once in office, he arranged for his associate and partner in crime, 0 to speak, Don Crispi, to be elected Prime Minister. Sicily, partially under control by organized crime for years, was now officially in the Mob's pocket. Pve looked into that election fairly thoroughly, or at least as thoroughly as the scant official records of it will allow. I've seen no evidence of supernatural activity, though I grant that both our forebears and Guild (now ironically titled the Syndicaté)jcould have taken a hand in ways that would never be detected. However, as you know, ve held up the Mafia as an example of the skill and organization that even Sleepers (to use your rather condescending term) are capable of for sometime now. [believe that, ifanything, vampires might have been attaching themselves like ticks to the new establishment, but evidence suggests that the undead are present in that role no matter what mortal government does. The Mafia is and always has been run by mortal human beings. I believe this is because its beginnings were too rural to be of interest to most of the forces that would later take an interest, and by the time it grew rich and powerful enough to attract our attention or that of the vampires or the Order of Reason, it was too diverse to suborn completely. Of course, I could be wrong. Pethaps even now the headsof the Five Families take their orders from some obscene undead horror. But I rather doubs it Read on — and do try not to see supernatural machinations at every turn, okay? The Mafia in the New World Asallifelong American, I can only imagine the novelty and promise that the USA must have offered to a poor Italian or Irish immigrant in the late 1800s and early part of che 20th century. Religious freedom, a voice in the government, and the chance to make some money and have some comfort — the same chance as anyone else to doso, in fact — was a beautiful notion to the poor of Europe and other locales. But we all know that wasn't (and isn’t) the case. ‘The system was human, run by people, and therefore suffered all too human biases. Those who were comfortable and in power had no real desire to let anyone else in —afterall, if everyone is equally rich, everyone is equally poor! So the throngs of people who came to America, who believed the “Give me = 16 WORLDOPDARKNESS:MAFIA VV WW OW Wee eeaA_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A__A__A___A_4_ A a_i) trabbsld your tired, your poor...” routine were commonly greeted only with more poverty and the prospect of living in ghettoes. The old despaired but the young adapted. They saw how the country was really run — by those with the strength and the will to bargain for or just take what they wanted. And they emulated the powerful, in a way. Gangs appeared in every major city in America. These gangs were more akin to the u “gangstaz” of today than to the Mafia; they would attack and beat people on the street, rob them, and generally vent their aggression however they chose. ‘And, like the aforementioned modern hoods, they did it largely out of a desire to belong. Their parents were immigrants, out of touch with the country they lived in. But the young toughs knew how things were, and if they couldn’t get a real glimpse of the American Dream, well, damn it, they'd raise Hell ‘An important point here, by the way: These gangs were restricted. Irish joined Irish gangs, Jews joined Jewish gangs. Not for several decades would organized crime stop arranging itself strictly along these lines. As more immigrantsffom Italy and especially Sicily arrived, it was nly natural that members of the Mafia wouldfas well, perhaps on ‘the run, or perhaps, like their more respectable countrymen, they were looking for new opportunities. They found them. Black Hand notes circulated in any predominantly Italian neighborhood, and most large cities had one. The victims assumed (possibly correctly) that the police either would not or could not protect them, just like in Sicily, so they paid. It wasn’t only poor shopkeepers, either — the famous tenor Enrico Caruso paid the Mafia for “protection” aswell. Both the Mafia and its victims viewed this extortion as a Sicilian affair, which meant that they were usually too frightened or stubborn to talk to the police even when reputable people around them were murdered for delinquent protection payments. Black Hand extortion wasn’t really all that profitable, though, and the first and principle sin of the Mafia has always been greed. Therefore, while such figures as Ignazio Saietta (“Lupo the Well” to his friends and intimates) were passing out vVvvvvVVVVWVVViVOV OV OV Vqgyourey, v CHAPTERONE ADISTINGUISHEDHISTORY © ITthreatening notes, the real movers and shakers were taking over legitimate Italian businesses — olives, wine grapes, andiso forth — as well as running illegal lotteries and prostitution. Men like Joe Masseria and Salvatore Maranzano woulld be important mafiosi for decades. They lent money to the poor, but stacked the interest andipayments so that the borrower was forever in thé Mafia’s debr. They would arrange for a supplicant’s family to have passage to America (legally or othe#wise), but then’someone, be it the newly arrived relative or whoever asked for the favor, would owe the Mafia his life. However, the Mob stayed in the Italian community for the most part, which meant that only Italians were commonly victimized. That changed notably in 1890 in New Orleans with the murder of police chief David Hennessy. ‘The Mafia Surfaces... Briefly Hennessy discovered that the Mississippi River docks were caught in a sort of turf war between two opposing families, the Matrangas and the Provenzanos. As the bodies mounted, Hennessy pushed his force to get some leads on this “Mafia,” but they seemed unable. The Mafia, for its part, attempted bribery and then threats to convince Hennessy to back off. When that didn’t work, they killed him. Public response to the murder was quick, and a grand jury concluded that the Mafia did indeed exist. Several mafiosi went on trial and were promptly acquitted, thanks to judicious bribery of the jury. The citizenry was outraged, and they bashed in the doors to the jail, dragged the defendants (awaiting release) out into the streets, and hanged them from lampposts. Justice is served? A note here, just to keep you interested (since I know you'd think of this anyway): Who killed Hennessy? No one is really sure. No one was ever arrested for his murder specifically, and neither the Matranga family nor the Provenzano family claimed credit for the hit, not thar it would have been smart to do so. So the question must be raised: When something ishappening that youdon’t understand, who benefits? Who had money to lose when the Mob was skimming cargo off of ships? Who had the most to gain by seeing the warend with neither side victorious? Who would becallous enough toarrange a hit of a dutiful, driven police chief, knowing the Public outery would result in the two families being scattered? And finally, who knew the city well ‘WORLD OP DARKNESS MAFIA AA A_A_A_A_s_A_A__A_s_A_4_ A A cnough to know how to arrange it? My guess would be someone who'd been in New Orleans for many years before the Matranga-Provenzano war, and remains there to this day. ‘At any rate, the Mafia in New Orleans went underground (even more than usual) for years until the lynch-mob fever subsided. It took some time, but it happened, ‘The Evolution ofthe New York Mobster One of New York's largest gangs was the Eastmans, led by one Monk Eastman, a hulking brute of a man in the employ of the city’s political machine. He and his thugs were very much forhire, and would beat, maim or kill any target their employers named. His primary job was making sure that elections went the way they were supposed to. That i, his employers were elected and re-elected. In return, in addition to money, Eastman received immunity. Although arrested too many times to recount, healwayswalked—hisfriendsin Tammany Hall saw to that. Eventually, Eastman’s turf bumped up against that of Paul Kelly (born Paolo Vaccarelli). Kelly, though assuredly a gangster, wasa different kind of man than Eastman — well-educated, soft-spoken, and smart. Eastman and Kelly's gangs went to war, culminating in the so-called Battle of Rivington Street. More than 100 gangsters spent the night shooting at each other. Policemen who tried to intervene found themselves shot at by both sides. The morning saw at least three men dead and several more badly injured. This all would have been bad enough, but Tammany Hall had been denying the existence of organized crime (meanwhile, using it for their own ends — or wasit using them?). The bigwigs sued for peace between the mobsters, which lasted a while, only to erupt again. They tried settling it in typical schoolyard fashion — Eastman and Kelly, mano a ‘mano, in the ring. I'm not joking, either. What's really amusing is that the fight was inconclusive. ‘They pounded on each other for a while, and then both collapsed. No clear winner, so the war continued, at least for while. Then Eastman managed to get himself arrested again and the leaders of Tammany Hall, no fools let him take his medicine. He eventually got out, but by that time he was powerless. Poor guy died in a gutter the day after Christmas, 1920. Shot todeath, asit happened.As AAA __A__A__A__4__4__4__A_A_A__A_4_ 4 A The point of all this was that the leaders of the city — the official ones, notthe crime bosses=-had recognized that a thug beating up people of the streets wasn't the way to go. They threw in with, Kelly and mobsters of his ilk: smart, willing to compromise, and subtle (more so than Eastman, anyway). Above all, the new breed of mobster had tobe willing and able to work within the law as well as outside of it. Recall, by the way, that the Sicilian Mob had been doing just that for years The Windy Glty New York may have been corrupt, but Chicago was downright rotten. Before Al Capone came Johnny Torrio. Torri was from New York, but he moved out west to Chicago at the request of a cousin to help take pressure off of her husband. Her husband, Big Jim Colosimo, ran whorehouses all over the city (Torrio’s cousin was the madam) and the pressure was coming in the form of Black Hand notes. Torrio arrived in Chicago in 1909, found out who was troubling his family and killed them. Torrio received control ofa minor whorehouse forhis rouble, butever the businessman, he gussied itup into a major attraction. Within a few years, he was running most of Colosimo’s businesses. White slavery was in its prime. Young girls would be lured ut from their homes on farms and promised the chance to make some money, and then forced to turn tricks. The sheer amount of money that prostitution pulled in during this time was frankly staggering, especially when compared with the amounts the girls were actually charging versushow many women were “working.” To give some point of reference, estimates place the annual take at around $30 million, whereas the number of tricks turned is guessed at something like 27 million. That means just over a dollar per trick. Pretty sad. Even sadder when you realize how much of that dollar the whores were actually getting — less than half. Aninteresting side note for you: Torrioevidently did a brisk business in “keepers.” Supposedly, these were hookers that Torrio never expected to see again. He'd tell the girls they were to make a special house call, that they'd get paid top dollar for it, but that they were to keep their mouths shut about it because the client was “an important fellow.” And by dawn, Torrio would be as much as a thousand dollarsricher and noone wouldeversee the hapless prostitute again, Sowho bought these “keepers?” Anyone's guess, really. Leeches needing blood, possibly, or even Nephandi needing sacrificial’ victims are both possibilities. I'm fairly sure that Torrio never really knew (or thoughtabout) where the “keepers” went. He was.a monster, but a human one, and most of us humans don’t want to know about things like that. How do you think they continue? Prohibition Prostitution was and remained a good money maker, but new laws in 1910 made it tougher on the white slavers. While Torrio never abandoned the business, there was better one on the way: selling booze. Various anti-alcohol groups in the country had been attacking theevilsof strongdrink, blaming booze for all the country’s woes — typical, isn’t it? Wehavetohaveascapegoat. Anyway, the Volstead Act went into effect at midnight, January 16, 1920. The law had actually been passed the year before, so everyone knew that America was going dry on that date, including the Mafia. They also knew that between medicinal and religious alcohol, easily smuggled Canadian booze, and thehomemade stuff that citizens had been making for years, there was enough drink to go around. All the Mob had to do was sell and distribute it icago’s New King, Torrio had Big Jim Colosimo murdered in May of 1920. About ayear earlier, he'dagreed togivesanctuary woayoungkilleron the lamnamed AlphonseCapone, with whom he had mutual acquaintances in New York (one of the men who asked Torrio to help Capone wasFrankie Yale,theman whokilled Colosimo for Torrio). Capone started out as a bouncer but was capableandambitiousand quickly rose to prominence in Torrio’s gang. Capone was Torrio's opposite in many ways. Torrio, ahead of his time, forged a peace between the warring gangs of Chicago (including the O'Donnell gang, the O’Banion gang, and the Terrible Gennas), convincing them that violent ccrime was not nearly as profitable as bootlegging and gambling. He despised unnecessary violence and preferred to use bribes and subtle tricks to get his way. When Chicago electeda reformer mayorin 1923 andsuddenly the police began raiding Torrio's interests, he moved operationsto the smaller city of Cicero. The local police resisted, but the citizens of (CHAPTER OE: DISTINGUISHED HISTORYA_A_A_A_A_A_A__4__A__A_4_A_ A 4 A th Cicero enjoyed slotimachines, so rather than fight the police, Torrio called in favorssfrom the county sheriff and had all of the'slots impourided. When the Cicero officials agreed tet him set up shop in their town, he returned them Torrio, secure in his power, left for Italy (he would make this trip several more timesin his life) and Al Capone took charge. The streets of Chicago, never truly safe even with the peace that Torrio arranged, became deadly once again. Torcio may have disapproved of violence, but Capone was a different story. “Moderation” was not really imhis vocabulary; he believed in using as much brutality as necessary to achieve his ends. Torrio recognized this; back from Italy in 1924, he asked Capone to “fix” the mayoral election in Cicero so that the cooperative party would stay in power. Capone did — his methods involved assaulting and intimidating voters, opening the ballot boxes to dispose of votes for the opposition, and making examples of people who wouldn’t cooperate. The evening of election day turned into a series of shootouts between the police and Capone's gang, which left his brother Frank among the slain. The bullets certainly didn’t stop flying there; the peace that Torrio had masterminded unraveledas each of Chicago's gangsstarted eyeing the others’ enterprises On May 19th, 1924, Torrio, Dion O'Banion and Hymie Weiss (one of O'Banion’s men) met to make a shipment fiom one of Torrio’s breweries. O’Banion had decided that he was leaving the city — the war was just getting too dangerous. As it happened, he'd tippedoffthe police totheshipment, which meant that all three of them were arrested, but thar O’Banion (a first-time offender of the Prohibition laws) would receive only afine, not jail time. Torrio, however, would not get off so easily — but as it happened, neither did O'Banion. Torrio arranged for his punishment: He was gunned down in the flower shop he ran. Torriowassentencedtonine months, butnearly served the same sentence as O’Banion. Before his term began, members of the O’Banion Mob ambushed and shot him. Torrio survived, and once his hospital term ended his prison term began. When that term ended, he officially gave control of Chicago's interests to Capone and left, once again, for Sicily Capone immediately went to war with Chicago's other gangs. Much of the work had already been done for him, as Weiss, now controlling the O’Banion gang, had virtually wiped out theGennas. Capone offered a truce; Weiss demanded that Capone tum overthemen whohadkilled O’Banion. Capone, naturally, refused, and the battlescontinued fora time. Weiss survived several attempts on his life, But fate caught up with him, and he, too, was slain, ndtfar from the flower shop where his friend Dion O'’Banion died. Thewarscontinued, but Capone wasinvariably the winner. There really wasn’t any serious threat tohistule overChicago—with William Thompson as mayor (whose position on Prohibition was that he wished to reopen the old saloons “and open 10,000 more”) as his pawn and ally, Scarface Al wallowed in luxury and publicity. Everywhere he went, he was treated as a celebrity, and he loved talking othe press (thisisone of the very few things that the 1987 film The Untouchables bothered to show correctly). He owned scores of businesses, legitimate and otherwise, and money flowed in from all angles. Not officially, of course, but he controlled them by dominating the unions. Almost any business would fold under a prolonged strike, and Al could signal one in any of a hundred unions simply by making a call. The money that Capone was making off of these rackets was staggering — and of course, the companies raised their costs to compensate. Estimates indicate that by 1930, mob influence costevery person in Chicago$45 annually. Amazingasitmightseem,Capone’sorganisation wasn’t making the money it could. George “Bugs” Moran, one of O’Banion’s lieutenants and leader of the gang after Hymie Weiss’ death, seemed determined to muscle in on Capone's rackets. He hijacked trucks, burned down one of Capone’sdog- racing tracks (such racing, at the time, was illegal) and assassinated Capone's men (but never got to Capone himself, obviously). Capone responded by leaving the state. He was in Florida on Valentine's Day, 1929, when six of Moran's men and one innocent victim (just a groupie who liked to hang out with gangsters) were lined up against a wall and slaughtered. Moran, had he been on time that morning, would have been with them — but he arrived afew minutes late, saw what he thought was a police car, and left. (Seven years later, on the anniversary of the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre, = no VV GVO VV OV OY VV TV VOY CV OV CV CW VV HY ot WORLD OF DARKNESS: MAFIAone of the probable gunmen was himself slain in a bowling alley. Everything comes back aroufid, and in the Mafia, it often happens with a kind of grim poetic justice.) ‘Meanwhile, in Old New York.. New York never had a Capone. While as much if not more illegal booze flowed through the streets duringthe 1920s, an arch-criminal wasnever behind icall. At least, not a visible one. Amold Rothstein, gambler, loan shark, and underworld mastermind since the early years of the 20th century started out as an importer of English and Scotch booze. He stuck with it for some years, but discovered that importing was a risk — if the authorities seized a ship and impounded the cargo, there was often no way to retrieve the product and any money spent on the shipment was lost for good. By the latter half of the 20s, he was out of the importing business (though by no means out of the underworld scene; he would remain a habitual gambler and retained controlling interests in various speakeasies until his murder in 1928).One of the people who took over his imports was Irving ‘Wexler, more often known as Waxey Gordon. He would later become infamous as a rat (and there are other suspicions about him, too — such as his nickname coming from his pale, yellowed skin — that never made it to the papers), but during Prohibition, he was becoming rich by importing, cutting and selling liquor. Rothstein's greatest contribution to the Mafia was probably acting as mentor to four very special thugs: Salvatore Lucania (Charlie“Lucky"Luciano), Francesco Castiglia (Frank Costello), Maier Suchowljansky (Meyer Lansky — you can see why he changed it) and Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel. These kids started out as minor-level hoodlums but were exceptional in at least one respect: They weren’t bigots. The Jewish and Sicilian gangs, remember, had barely tolerated one another, but these four toughs recognized the opportunities that the others, presented and agreed to look past nationality and religion. The four of them sat at Rothstein's feet, so to speak, and listened to his views on running the business. In some ways, Rothstein's ideas paralleled Johnny Torrio's. He believed in minimal violence and stressed diplomacy — it was simply a better way to go, asit fostered fewer grudge matches, which, in turn, made for a better long-term situation for all involved. And indeed, while the Prohibition years in New York had their share of murder and gang warfare, it didn’t take place in the public eye nearly as much. Gangsters killed each other, but not in broad daylight and not in front of witnesses. Another important development of the time, whether it came from Rothstein or not, was cooperating with other bosses in other citiessLuiciano and company needed to get the booze before they could ell it, afterall, and they made deals with bosses in Atlantic City and here in Boston (both cities’ ports became hubs for illegal booze). Expanding further, they contacted Moe Dalitz of Cleveland to tap into the vast quantities of whiskey he was smugglingfromCanada—Lansky,asuperbdiplomat, traveled all over the country to make deals. ‘What eventually evolved wasthe Seven Group: Luciano and Costello (Manhattan); Enoch “Nucky” Johnson (Atlantic City); Waxey Gordon (Philadelphia); Joseph “Joe Adonis” Doto (Brooklyn); LongyZwillman (LongIslandand New Jersey); Lansky and Siegel (acting as enforcers, protecting shipments from hijackers and hijacking competitors); and Tortio (akindofoverseer for the whole arrangement). Those seven powers formed the core, and made alliances with gangs from New England to the Gulf of Mexieo (with Chicago notably missing) This organization curbed the violencetthat was cutting into profits on all sides. More importantly, itset the stage for the national alliance of mobsters that was to happen in May of 1929. Prohibition, after all, wasn't long for the world, The End of the Dry Spell Prohibition officially ended on December 5, 1933, but that didn’t catch anybody by surprise, especially not the Mafia. In 1928, both Torrio and Rothstein (before being shot that November) predicted that Prohibition wasn’t going to last much longer. The country was headed for a downturn, and when the bottom fell out, people were going to demand their right to drink. Never let it be said that the Mob doesn’t think ahead. In 1929, Atlantic City hosted the first meeting of gang leaders from all across the country. could list who was present, but really, I think you'll find the absentees more interesting. CHAPTER ONE:A DISTINGUISHED HISTORYa, trabald Of course Lutiano and his crew were present; he'd organized the whole thing. But Luciano had recently thrown inywith Joe “The Boss” Masseria, cone of the Mafia dons from the old days. Masseria himself was not present, and neither was Salvatore Maranzano, Masseria’s archrival. Andreas Giovanni, vying for primacy over Boston's interests with Charles “King” Solomon, also didn’t attend (though Solomon did). In fact, none of the old school mafiosi (nicknamed “Mustache Petes" by the younger crew) were present. Chalk that up to racism; with Irishmen and Jews part of thediscussion, the older guard probably felt insulted. As it happened, they weren’t invited anyway. ‘The bosses metand discussed working together, not competing, and making sure everybody had a share of the profits. They planned for the end of Prohibition, and did thesmartest thing they possibly could: They decided to use the know-how of shipping fand distributing liquor to continue doing it — legally — once Prohibition died. But they by no means intended to go straight. Prostitution and gambling in all forms were big sources of funds for the Mafia (King Solomon, at this meeting, was heard to grouse about how the Giovanni Mob had tricked him out of controlling interest in an underground boxing ring in Boston. That ring, by the way, still operates, and is one of the few Mol related venues that the Giovanni still maintain a interest in) Another important discussion was about violence and the danger it caused to the Mafia Chicago, in particular, was becoming a problem — Capone's penchant for gunning down the competition was making operations hard on the Mob all over. Capone, who was indeed present for the Atlantic City meeting, agreed that as the most visible gangster in America, he should take a fall to appease the citizenry. After the meeting, he was picked up in Pennsylvania for carrying concealed weapon, sentenced to a year in prison (of which he served ten months) and emerged in 1930 to find his empire in trouble. The Depression had hit — the stock market crashed in October of 1929 (as I'm sure you know), and newspaper stories about Capone's lavish lifestyle only angered the poor \WORLDOP DARKNESS: MAFIA Vivvvv VvVVV VV VV OVIVIV VOVOV Vivcitizens who could barely afford rent. Gapone’s organization fell under tough scrutiny, and while they never pinned any kind of violent crime on him, he wasindictedin 1931 forincome tax evasion. He served 10 years, some of that at Alcatraz, and when he was finally released in 1939, syphilis had reduced him to a gibbering idiot. So who put the pressure on the Chicago authorities to “get Capone”? President Herbert Hoover? Possibly; after all, his election in 1928 was followed so quickly by the stock market crash that he must have been desperate for a way to regain public favor. Mayor William Thompson? Maybe so; he had his eyes on the White House fora while, and putting Capone away would have been a good way to dispel the (quite true) stories of him being in the Mob's pocket. The public? Certainly the general populace had been enamored of Capone once, but after so many of them lost their livelihoods in the crash (and after many had lost friends and family in the crossfire of the Chicago gang wars), they'd had as much as they could stomach. But] heard astory once, and while I don'treally buy it, itinvolves your paisan Dominic Cardona, Jr Turns out he was in prison at the same time as Capone, before he was shipped to Alcatraz (yes, we'veestablished that Dominic's been around since at least the 30s, but I'm till not going to kill him for you). Anyway, he later told an acquaintance that he actually had the cell next to Searface Al, and that every night he heard the mighty Capone whimpering and someone whispering — someone with an accent that was decidedly Sicilian. So was it syphilis that drove Al Capone insane? Was it really public outcry that brought him to the courthouse? Probably itwas.Like said, 1don’tbelieve the story, Alll right, so we've come up to the end of Prohibition. AndI'verunacrossexactly one confirmed report of Dominic Cardona, Jr. during that time (I know he told the story about Capone, I just don't believe it). Next letter continues this history. —Jerry Wars, Bloody and Otherwise Ireceived your letter. I don’t know how many, times I have to go through this with you, Mark. I see your point. I agree with you. The man needs to die, sooner rather than later. I just don’t see why you can’t get on a plane and come out here and do ityourself. Dominic Cardona, Jr., to the best of my knowledge, has been around since at least 1925 — as an adult. He’s gone by different names, but he’s been a gangster all his life, and has therefore never had much ofan “official” existence; it would surprise me greatly if he ever had a real birth certificate. I've been watching him off and on for a couple of weeks now; he seems to stick around the waterfront, for the most part, but I see him as often during the day as at night, so I don’t think he'sa vampire (assuming that particular bit of lore is true). Anyway — your letter indicated you wanted to know more about the Mafia, so I dug some more info up for you The Death of Mustache Pete The Atlantic City Conference in 1929 was supposed to end the feuds between gangs, but of course that didn’t happen. The older mafiosi — notably Joe Masseria and Salvatore Maranzano — had been gunning for each other for several years. Both of them dated back to the early days of the American Mob, and both felt they had a right to call the shots for the current Mafia. As mentioned, Lucky Luciano thought otherwise, but figured that he wasn't quite ready to strife out on his own. So, prior to the meeting in Atlante City, he hooked up with Masseria’s crew: Masseria.. The plan was never to ride Masseria’s coattails, however. Luciano wanted him and Maranzanodead. The body count between them was mounting quickly — the gangsters referred to this period, roughly 1929 to 1931, asthe Castellammarese War, because Maranzano’s people were largely from the Sicilian city of Castellammare del Golfo — and the public ‘was starting to demand protection. Throwing in with Masscria was a dangerous game; Luciano became his right-hand man, but that simply made Charlie Lucky a target. In fact, in October of 1929 (before the stock market crash), Luciano was taken for a one-way ride, and he became the only known gangster to return from one. He suffered a severe beating in the process but never said who was behind it. The obvious answer would be Maranzano’s people, but frankly, if that were the case, why didn’t they just kill him? Rumors abound — he got a girl vvvVVYVYVYVYVVVVVY VV OV OVG§aurey, CHAPTER ONE: DISTINGUISHED STORY To, Bpregnantand her father was behind it, he bargained with his assailants and paid them off, and so forth. Some cynics (like me) have even suggested he arranged it himself to bolstethis reputation, which it certainly did. Luciano himself arranged Masseria’s death: He. treated Joe the Boss to a lot of food atid booze (not a difficult task; Masseria was a much a glutton as Capone) and then went to the men’s Foom while his friends Vito Genovese, Joe Adonis, Albert ‘Anastasia and Bugsy Siegel walked into the near- empty Festaurant, shot Masseria several times, and then left. Luciano washed his hands, and then stepped out and called the police. Maranzano... With Masseria dead, Maranzanodeclaredhimself capo di tutti capi —and informed the rest of the Mafia that his word waslaw, he expected acutofeverything, and that he would be handing down new orders and laws tothe other gangsters, which would be followed onpain of death. He also pioneered the Five Families of New York, and held a lavish ceremony much like a coronation. Luciano and company were unimpressed, and starting sending messages to their allies from the Atlantic City conference, to the tune of, “Thisguyhasgottogo.” The restofthe underworld wasin agreement. MeyerLansky imported four Jewish gunmen, trained them to act like federal agents, and had them burst in toMaranzano’sofficesand demand to speak with him alone. Maranzano had no reason to suspect they were anything but what they said {and like Masseria, Maranzano typically forgot that the underworld wasn’t exclusively Sicilian). They took him into his office and killed him, but not neatly —six tab wounds, four gunshot wounds, and aslit throat. Another Rasputin, no? And All the Rest The nightafter Maranzano died became known as the Night of Sicilian Vespers in gangster lore. Supposedly, Luciano’s associates across the nation sought out supporters of the old-school Mob and slaughtered them. Reports put the death toll anywhere from 20 to 100. This is all bunk, of course. [have yet to see a list of yietims or any other verifiable evidence that anything like the Night of Vespers ever occurred. ‘No gangster I've spoken with orbook I've read gives me any reason to believe it. A_A_A_A_A_s_A__A__s__A_A__A__A__A_4_A_A_A_ st And yet, there must be some truth to it, because upon reading my own words, I don’t get that bitter “untruth” taste in my mouth. Well, if there is anything behind it, I have no idea what that something would be. Cooperation? ‘And then itwastime foranother conference, in Chicago this time (this was shortly before Capone ‘was sent up thélriver; he still had the money left to entertain everyone well). Luciano was offered the title of capo di tutticapi but declined it—he wanted the governing body to be a council, wherein every representative had an equal vote. He himself was voted unanimously to the position of chairman, of course. Atthe time, only Italianscould vote, though important non-Italian gangsters like Lansky and Moe Dalitz could sit in on the meetings. The Five Families of New York — headed by Luciano, Joe Bonanno (a.k.a. Joe Bananas), Joseph Profaci, Tom Gagliano, and Vincent Mangano had territories of their own, but Luciano made it clear that warfare wasn’t the way to defend these territories. Just like in Atlantic City, Charlie Lucky preached the importance of working together without competing. How long did that last? ADifferentSort of War "War on crime,” is new neither as a concept or phrase. In his years as governor of New York, Franklin Roosevelt led his own war on crime, appointing a special commission headed by Judge Samuel Seabury to expose the corruption of Tammany Hall and its link with organized crime. It worked — Seabury's inquiries brought to light undeniable links between the Mafia and the city's leaders. But Roosevelt had a problem — he needed Tammany’s support in his bid for the presidency over Al Smith (here’s a funny note: there was a third contender, a man called John Nance Garner, but no one in the cities really considered his campaign serious. Why? Because he was from Texas, that far-off, crazy land —not really felt to be part of the US in most large cities. Maybe they know something wedor't...). Anyhow, Roosevelt looked over the commission’ findings, decided that there wasn’t enough to go on, and didn't pursue the matter (at the time). The underworld decided that Roosevelt would do after all and Tammany Hall threw their support behind him. \WORLDOFDARKNESS:NAFIA VV VV NV VY WEY VV VEY VV Vn vereAs soon as his partys presidential nomination was official, however, Roosevelt began his). corruption campaign again. Seabury's commission started asking difficult questions, and some folks— James Walker, the mayor of New York, among them — didn’t have answers. Walker resigned and fled to Europe, but Roosevelt continued on. The Underworld Fights Back? Possibly. Do you know about the attempt on Roosevelt's life? On February 15, 1933 —not long after Roosevelt won the presidential election —he was traveling through Floridaand stopped in Miami to give an open-air address. Standing next to him, was the recently elected mayor of Chicago, Anton Cermak. DuringRoosevelt'sspeech, ashot rangout (prompting a nearby reporter to joke to Cermak, “Just like Chicago, huh”). Cermak was hit in the lung, fatally, as it turned out. The shooter, an Italian marksman named Joseph Zangara, was tried, convicted, and executed within a month. Of course, rumors abound as to what really happened. One story is that Zangara fired but a nearby woman grabbed hisarm and pulled, throwing his aim off. Another is that he wasn’t aiming for Roosevelt, as was generally assumed, but Cermak (the mayor had recently sent police officers to murder FrankNitti, one of Capone's chiefoperatives Nitti survived the shooting, butkilled himselfsome time later — he wasn't thrown off a building by Elliot Ness, as a certain film depicted). There’s no way to verify his motives or his employers; he’s dead, after all. But here’s the truth of why he missed, as told to me by a member of our Tradition who was actually there: Zangara, while he was a crack shot, was also very short. He stood on a chair and aimed for the President-elect, but his chair wobbled slightly, andhe missed. Now, whatare the oddsthat the chair would shift at that precise moment? What indeed? The Mob Prospers.... Really, even with Roosevelt putting pressure on the Mafia, itwas doingall right. As] mentioned, when Prohibition died, the Mob turned to ‘manufacturing liquor legally and made a killing. During the Depression, mobsters were some of the few citizens with any cash — after all, they had never played the stock markets or put money in banks, so the Mafia had enough cash to get through. (Interesting note: Somebody came up with the idea of imposing high taxes on the now-legal liquor. Result? People kept buying illegal, untaxed booze.) Gambling, in the form ofslot machinesand“policy” (a bertor would place money on a number from I to 999, with a 600 to 1 payoff ifhis number came up. The number was derived from the results of a given horse racing track, or sometimes the last digits of the stock marker’s closing number, and therefore unfixable. We know, however, that nothing is unfixable) provided even more cash. Loan-sharking changed a bit during this time Many of the folks who needed money weren't street scum but otherwise respectable folks who had lost everything in the stock market. So, instead of beating adelinquent debtor bloody, the Mob would just become his partner, and then edge him out. By the mid 1930s, the Mafia controlled an astonishing diversity of businesses: hotels, car’sales, imports, drugstores, newspapers (!), food packaging and service. The list is really endless. Of course, they were still infecting unions, as well, driving dues up and skimming off the top, threatening strikes if the business owners didn’t pay. The diversity of the Mafia is/taggering, no? The reason for that is that they were (and are) opportunists at heart. They'd jump in on, any business they could, take enotigh control to make money but leave enough pace for the business to continue running, and rake in the eash. Makes you wonder who theyileared from, back inthe rural villages of Sicily ‘And Gets Oyanized Seems like the Mafia did a lot of “getting organized,” doesn’ it? Don’t forget that all of this was taking place in a fairly short amount of time; over a period of years, something called the Combination (or Syndicate) was forming. Longy Zwillman stressed the need for gangsters to present a good front. The crazy anties of John Dillinger and the warfare between Dutch Schultz and Vincent “Mad Dog” Coll were bad for business. Zwillman himself actually offered a sizeable reward for the capture of the kidnappers of Charles Lindbergh’s son (for all the good it did). The Mafia nailed down its policies more clearly during this time. Louis Lepke offered to take over enforcement of those policies, with a group of dedicated killers (including Albert Anastasia) — this enforcement wing of the Mob became known, Suv VV VOY VO VIVO Y VV OV OY OV Ve (CHAPTER ONE:ADISTINGUISHED HISTORY < bA _A_A_A_A_A_A__A_A__A__A_A__A__A__A_A_A_A_A_—A as Murder, Inc. The Mob wisely decided that reporters and politicians. would be off limits, as killing either of them tended to incite feprisals and get spotlights aimed at thelunderworld, and that always spelled disaster. Cops weren't exactly off limits, as killing a cop was seen tobe an occasional, necessary evil, but police were by andllarge excluded: from assassination. The country was headed out of thé'Depression and smack into a World War, and the Mafia would ‘meetithat turn of events better organized than it had been. Just like Prohibition, they'd find ways to ‘make moneVoff the war. Buc before that happened, Abe “Kid” Reles would spill his guts, break the vow of silence in the Mafia, and introduce Murder, Inc. to the world. Rats Supposedly, a rat will do anything to survive, which is why the term is applied to criminals who betray theiraccomplicestowin freedom. The policy of granting immunity to gangsters who “rated out” their fellows is probably what enticed Kid Reles to sing — thatgand he was afraid that if he didn’t talk, someone else'might, and then he'd be on trial. ‘Whatever his motives, Reles was exactly what William O'Dwyer, the chief prosecutor of New York in 1940, needed. Reles wasn’t a don, of course, nor was he a low-level solider. He was a middleman, a wiseguy, and he had a photographic memory. He gave details on the lives and minds of Louis Lepke, Luciano, Siegel, and so on — and never messed up once. No one has a memory that good, right? So who fed him the information? | know a dozen different ways that one of us could have done so, and the bloodsuckers have also proven themselves to be accomplished at brainwashing (or, of course, the government or some other more mundane group could easily have penned his confession. Jesus, I was starting to sound like you fora minute). Buteven ifconfessing wasn't Reles’ idea (or if someone was feeding him information once he started to sing), whoever was actually behind it must have had real inside data, ReleserowedaboutMurder, Inc.’sability to perform killings, robberies, hijackings, and so forth to a Customer's specifications, and that the “customers” in Guestion were members of the Syndicate all over the U.S. He led them to bodies in mob graveyards (including one outside of town here in Boston; oddly enough, forensic evidence showed that some of those bodies had been dug up and then reburied or replaced). With his testimony, O'Dwyer whipped through New York and arrested neatly everybody Reles implicated. Some of those folks, like Allie Tannenbaum, joined the chorus, so to speak, and gave testimony in exchange for immunity and freedom. Others received prison time or the electric chair. One of the folks who died theréiwas Louis Lepke. Lepke was never'a bootlegger, he was a sadistic racketeer. Versatile, too — he'd use acid, knives, guns, ice picks, or whatever else was handy tokill or intimidate someone. With Luciano in prison (for masterminding a prostitution ring, which he vociferously denied) and Dutch Schultzdead, Lepke was public enemy number one. He had been in hiding for ewo years by that time, but the New York authorities were turning up the heat on every criminal they could find that was even loosely connected to the Mob — which included the bookies running numbers games. This heat was bad for business, and Luciano (sill in prison), Lansky, and the others on the council decided that Lepke either needed to turn himself in or die (he did both, as it happened). Lepke walked right into a trap — the Mob told Lepke that he'd be tried only on federal charges and not turned over to the New York authorities (who could book him for murder). Lepke, agreed, and in August of 1939, got intoa car with J. Edgar Hoover, tosurrender. Lepke was raked over the coals in federal court, and then handed over to O'Dwyer for prosecution. Tannenbaum testified against Lepke in court (Relesdid not... but we'll get to that) and Lepke was executed in March, of 1944 (only four years after his conviction, Times have changed...) Reles didn’t testify against Lepke, though, because the Kid was dead. He fell out ofafifth-floor window along with some knotted bed sheets. Not hard to surmise what happened; someone made a few calls and the cops assigned to guard him looked the other way just long enough for Murder, Inc. to pay a call Reles’ death spared Albert Anastasia and Bugsy Siegel (for the moment) — he was the key witness in the cases against both men. But the underworld was about to undergo one of its strangest twists, all onaccount of the nationalistic paranoia that World War Il brought. matt 26 © WORLDOP DARKNESS:MAFIA VV TV OV TV Y VV OV TV Ua VievA—AA_A_A_A_sA_s_a_A_a_ a a 4 4 1a Dead Mobsters Thought I'd mention this because it’s up your alley. Mafiosi are pretty superstitious most of the time, anda lotof them believe in ghosts. Sometimes they'll make little concessions to theirdead buddies, and who knows if it helps or not? What I do know isthat LouisLepke paid some old friendsa visit after he rode the lightning The story goes that for about eleven months after Lepke died, a mobster who was about to get caught by the cops (or whacked, the stories vary) would see him in a dream, in the electric chair, being electrocuted. The dreams apparently varied on other points. Sometimes Lepke would talk, sometimes he'd just point at the dreamer and grin, whatever. Buthe was almost always right. A wiseguy who had a “Lepke dream” was invariably dead or in police custody within a week (though some mafiosi report having close calls with death or the cops). Idon'tknow whether Lepke’s ghost returned or why he would take such an interest in stalking mobsters after death, but | havent heard any stories of “Lepke dreams” after 1945. Not sure why that is. Operation: Underworld Neverletitbeséid that mobsters aren'gpattiotic Americans. Their methods would never flyin most countries, and wouldn't be nearly as profitable. But the American Way had made a lot of gangsters very tich, and they didn’tsee any reason why World War Il shouldn’t be the same way. During wars, as I'm sure you know, things like gasoline and tires are rationed. During the Second World War, fabric, meat and many other commodities were also rationed, all in the name of the war effort. Citizens received special stamps with which to buy rationed goods. And during Prohibition, liquor kept for medicinal purposes was only released to people hearing special certificates. The Mob hadn't forgotten any of its old tricks counterfeited and stole the stamps, hijacked shipments of rationed goods, and sold them off to anyone willing to pay. Always a way to make a profit, it seems. Gangsters But Charlie Luciano was still behind bars, and, as the “Chairman of the Board,” as far as the underworld went, that wasn’t an ideal situation. Iny vvvVvVVYVVYVVVVV VV VO OVO oVavowrey, Vv (CHAPTERONE:A DISTINGUISHED HISTORYFebruary of 1942, however, the catalyst that would free Charlie Lucky exploded in the Hudson River. ‘A luxury liner, the S. S)Normandie, which had been converted to carry Allied troops burst into flames and left many patriotie Americas worried that the docks were crawling with:saboreurs. This was ridiculous; the docks Were crawling with mobsters and folks influenced by mobsters. If the navy had looked at the facts — nothing got in or out of New York's harbors without the ‘Organization taking a piece of the action — they wouldn't have worried. After all, if the Axis took over the U.S., would the Mob enjoy the same freedom? Probably not. But the navy fretted, and Charlie Lucky, working through channels, sent word that maybe the Mafia could help the navy, Ik took some time, but eventually someoné Suggested that the navy go speak to Charlie Lucky (who had taken great painstomake ure that theidea idm’ seem to come from him). He said he'd love to help — if he were moved from the dank cell at Dannetora to Great Meadow Prison (moreacountry clubthanaholdingfacility, really), hecould probably do something. He wasm, just moved there — he was given an office, a phone, and visiting privileges. Among his visitors: Meyer Lansky, Frank Costello, Joe Adonis and Albert Anastasia (by this time, Reles was dead and there wasno real case against Anastasia anymore). He purported to be talking about national security, but more likely, he and his friends were milking the rationed-goods angle for all it was worth. But he talked a good game, even providing postcards picturing the Sicilian coast so that the Allies could plan their landing. Ler’s be honest, here — Luciano left Sicily asa young child and hadn't been back. But the military bought it, and at war’send, Luciano was freed and deported back to Italy. Sowho burned the Normandie? I's norsomuch a question anymore. Albert Anastasia and his brother, “Tough Tony” did the deed personally. Their objective was to get their boss outof prison — and the plan went off without a hitch. Operation: Underworld had achieved its objective in fine style. Another Conference The Sicilian Mafia didn’t have much of an interest in narcotics before the late 1940s. Oh, there was the occasional pusher in their ranks — Luciano did some dealing when he was young, in fact — but for the most part, the Mob didn’t sully its hands with drugs. Before you start thinking this stemmed from any kind of righteousness, I suggest you forget it — it was all about money. The Organization recognized that the risks associated swith selling drugs weren’t worth the money they'd make, not when they had so many other enterprises, that were bringing in cash hand over fist. So the Mob stayédimostly drug free until Vito Genovese came along. Drugs Genovese was actually an important figure in the Mafia — he was one of the men who murdered Joe Masseria, in fact. He fled to Italy in 1937 when facing a murder charge, counting on his friends in Mussolini’s government to harbor and protect him. Itworked fora while, but then the war ended, Iraly lost, and many of I! Duce’s cohorts wound up hanging. Genovese, no fool, secured a position at an army base as a translator, but began selling off ‘American goods from the supply depots. Eventually, someone caught on and contacted the FBI to see if Genovese was wanted. He was, as it happened — for murder — and so was shipped to New York. However, before his ship docked, the witness against him was poisoned and Genovese walked. More specifically, he walked straight into territory controlled by the Mangano and Bonanno and started his own operations. This was the sort of behavior that might have led to another way, but Lansky and Luciano stepped in and had one of their famous meetings, this time in Havana, Cuba. Shortly before Christmas, 1946, Genovese, Anastasia, Bonanno and company flocked to a hotel in sunny Cubato attend (supposedly) a party for Frank Sinatra. Sinatra himself arrived at that party with wo of Al Capone's cousins, s0 it’s not difficult to guess how he felt about the Mob Be that as it may, the assemblage discussed important matters, one of which was narcotics. Luciano, having done time on drug charges, advised against the Mafia getting involved, but his view was hardly universal. At the end, that discussion was tabled and each individual boss was told to go his own way on the subject. = 28 WORLDOFDARKNESS: MAFIA WON TY Vig Y VON ON V OV HV WY Sv rw VOY OYViva Las Vegas Las Vegas was the other topic of the day. Seems that Bugsy Siegel hada grandiose vision of Vegas as a gambling Mecca. Up to that time, Reno was the: big attraction for gamblers, while Las Vegas! was pretty much aone-horse town. Siegel had borrowed money fromhisfriends in the Mob and in Hollywood (he was the West Coast's boss, remember) to build a magnificent hotel called the Flamingo. He finally did get it built and opened, but not without some sweating; one of the things that came out at the meeting in Cuba was that Siegel was siphoning money off the building funds and socking itaway in a Swiss bank. The Mob let him live about another year. The Flamingo opened just after Christmas in 1947. It didn’t do so well initially, but by spring, the place was turning a profit. Siegel should have left the country, as indeed he may have been planning, but fate caught up with him. He was shot to death in June, and Lansky’s men took over the Flamingo. Over the next few years, hotels started to spring up in Vegas, created what is now called the Strip, and neatly all of those hotels were owned in part or in full by the Mafia. Howard Hughes managed to screw himselfnicely by buying up most of Nevada and making a fortune for the Mob from the casinos. His big mistake: He didn’t hire new staff when he bought the casinos, which meant that mafiosi were handling (and therefore redirecting) most of the money. An interesting attitude at the time, by the way, was that only criminalscould run casinossuccessfully (having been to Vegas, I'll state thar it’s less criminals and more chumps that make the casinos rich — don’t people even consider the odds of winning?) and chat criminals would run them honestly. Ha. Getting ahead of myselfa bit, Meyer Lansky was indicted in 1969 for skimming $36 million off the Flamingo alone, and God only knows how much money actually found its way into Swiss banks during the 50s and 60s. Anyway, with Hughes making profits (though those profits didn’t reflect what the casinos were taking in even remotely), the state officials figured they should get in on the act, and Mob share in Vegas gambling faltered. Today, while the Rothsteins keep a hand in, most of the gambling in Vegas is legit. Things fre Tough All Over In 1947, Luciano was expelled from Cuba and shipped back to Italy at the insistence of Harry Anslinger, director of the Bureau of Narcotics, Anslinger was convinced (ironically) that Luciano was a drug lord, staying in Cuba to oversee shipments of narcotics into the States. That might have been true, but Luciano denied it, It didn’t matter; the U.S. threatened to withhold medicine and supplies from Cuba if they didn’t depoft him to Italy. They did, and there he remained TheKefauver Commission But Luciano might have counted himself fortunate — he never had to appear on television and deny his links to organized crime. Beginning in May of 1950, a special committee pioneered by Tennessee's Senator Estes Kefauver toured the country, putting organized crime’s figures on the witness stand and grilling them unmercifully. Most of them pled the Fifth Amendment, of course, but that wasn’ethe point. The committee wasn’tformed to gain a lot of convictions, it was formed because Kefauver wanted to know the extent and scope of organized crime in America — and he felt the people should know, too. And the people found out? If Kefauver had simply published hisifindings, even in the daily news, it probably wouldn’t have had astuich of an impact. Butthe committee hearingswere televised, and Americans sat glued to the sets, watching the Mafia shift uncomfortably as Kefauver and his committee rattled off charges of racketeering, extortion, and murder and then, almost as an afterthought, asked forconfirmation. The gangsters either denied it or refused to answer, but that didn’t matter. Albert Anastasia and Joe Adonis, as well as scores of lower-level hoods, had their faces broadcast all across the country. Frank Costello, who had tried so desperately to become a respectable businessman, refused tolet the cameras show his face. Instead, they captured his hands, nervously drumming his fingers or fiddling with his cigarettes, and his shaky voice, and that was probably worse for him. It didn’t help that he changed stories often, left the room when he became agitated, and refused to produce documents that the committee requested. (CHAPTERONE ADISTINGUISHED HISTORYAA AAA Antermath Costello didn’t serve substantial jail time as a direct result of the hearings, but he did lose his leadership role in the Syndicate, He wasn’tthe only one. Joe Adonis was indicted ongambling charges, and a host of other indictments followed. He fled. the country and retumed to Italy. Willie Moretti, another leader and a partner of Longy Zwillman, didn’t have the chance to go to prison. He was murdered instead (though, since his mind was startiig,to go due to advanced paresis, the same disease that supposedly killed Capone, this was more a merey killing than an assassination). Vito Genovese, however, was doing fine. He'd been all but ignored during the Kefauver commission’s circus. Yes, he'd been subpoenaed but had left che country during that time, and since hé ‘was regarded as a second-tier hood, the commission didn’t go looking for him. After the hoopla from the commission died down, he assumed control of the Luciano family. He was already second only to Costelle in that role, and since Costellohad decided to retire from the Syndicate altogether, Genovese could have had the family to himself. Bur the principle sin and guiding philosophy of the Mafia is and always has been greed. Genovese didn’t want to be “just” the head of the Luciano family, he wantéd to be the new capo di tutti capi. Apparently, what had happened to Masseria and Maranzano escaped his attention. At any rate, he disobeyed a direct order from the ruling council (including votes from Luciano and Adonis in Italy) and sent a hit man after Costello. The assassin, Vicente “The Chin” Gigante, screwed up. He grazed Costello’s head but did no real damage. He was eventually tried for the attempted murder, but Costello, in Mafia tradition, wouldn’t identify him, so he walked. Costello, for his part, had no desire to dodge bullets for the rest of his life (he was having enough trouble dodging jail time), so he offered Genovese a deal. If Genovese would stop trying to have him shot, Costello wouldn't bring up the matter to the council (which basically meant that Genovese wouldn’t be shot in retaliation). They agreed, Costello went back to playing shuffleboard, and Genovese went back to New York to direct his “family” with an iron fist. a_A_A_A_A_A_A_A__A__A__A__A_A_s_ Neither of the men meant to keep his word, of course. Genovese still wanted control, and was afraid that Costello might try to stop him by proxy. Costello didn't want to see the Syndicate in the hands ofa petty drugdealer like Genovese, Genovese figured that if Costello was going toact against him, it would be through Albert Anastasia. Anastasia’s ‘underboss was a mafioso named Carlo Gambino, and Rewanted control of the Anastasia family. So Gambinotthrey:in with Genovese, and contracted Anastasia’s murder out to the Gallo brothers. On October 25, 1957, Albert Anastasia sat down in a barber's chair. “Crazy Joe” Gallo and another man, likely one of this brothers, walked into the shop and shor the feared Lord High Executioner of Murder Inc. to death, Gambino took control of Anastasia's interests. Genovese seta date fora meeting of all of the underworld’s bosses. Rather than have the meeting in a major city, however, he decided on a small town in upstate New York called Apalachin. The Apalachin Debacle Someone wasn't thinking ahead. It mighthave been Genovese, for holding the meeting in the tiny town in the first place. It might have been Joseph. Barbara, who owned the country estate where the meeting was taking place. Either way, the sudden reservation of dozens of hotel rooms and purchase of meat and other supplies in great quantity didn’t escape the notice of the New York State Police. As limousines from all over the country arrived and all headed for the same place, the cops decided that something interesting was going on and put roadblocks around the house. A minor thug — likely out for a smoke or just standing guard — noticed the roadblocks, and rushed inside to sound the alarm, No one did jail time as a direct result of ‘Apalachin, because havingameetingisn'ta.crime. “But it was funny as hell,” one of the officers was later quoted as saying. “All these middle-aged mobster guys jumping out of windows, running through the woods. Even if we couldn't book them, it was still fun rounding them up.” And what a catch, indeed. Genovese, Joe Profaci, Joe Bonanno, and nearly 60other mafiosi were captured (and later released). But there were nearly 100 on the guest list. Some of them escaped into the woods, and I'll touch on that in a sec. A few = 30,” WORLDOPDARKNESS: MAFIA VoV VY OV CY LV TY vee VoV VN VV OV OV VOY VGAA _A_A_A_A_A_A__A_A__A__s_A__4_A_ AAA actually managed to escape by hiding out in the cellar until the police left. Among them: Déminic Cardona, Jt. And the mobsters in charge of Chieago and New Orleans never showed at all, claiming delays en route, but since both of those cities were still loyal to Luciano and Costello, it makes you wonder how accidental the Apalachin incident really was Genovese’s hopes for control of the Mob went up in smoke. No one was going to swear loyalty to him now. Buta power vacuum had appeared in the underworld. Many of the major players were in prison (Genovese was indicted on drug charges in 1959 and given 15 years), out of the business (Costello), toonew to the organization (Gambino) orto busy with their own troublesto lead (Profaci). An afterthought for Apalachin: I mentioned that some of the gangsters who fled ran into the woods. A few of those, including an up-and-comer in the Profaci family, were never seen again. I've visited Apalachin and I wandered close to those woods, and focused a bit on the forests around the town. What I felt was an air of chaos and sheer rage like I've never encountered. Mafia lore has it that the few gangsters who vanished after Apalachin left the country or were shot by rivals in the confusion, I think they met a much worse fare ‘The Gallo-Profacl War Profaci’s troubles had much to do with the Gallo brothers. “Crazy Joe” Gallo had a reputation of being somewhat difficult to work with, but he was, in some ways, a visionary. Many of the Italian and Jewish mobsters shunned blacks, but Gallo figured that much of inner-city crime was going to be black-controlled in years to come, just in terms of sheer numbers. He also realized that no matter what kind of rules or honor codes the Mafia set for itself, they would always be broken — change and eventual breakdown is inevitable in any system, as wwe well know. Frankly, thatkind of entropy started showing up long before this war. Hell, Luciano contributed to it by wiping out the Mustache Petes. The established order gets a little too established, stifles change and growth, and then everything falls apart, leading to change again. The slide from Dynamism to Stasis to Entropy repeats itself. Sorry about that little diatribe. In any event, the Gallo brothers worked with Joe Profaci for a time, but then started demanding bigger pieces of the profits. Profaci, not a particularly generous fellow, turned down their requests. Crazy Joe responded by kidnapping Profaci’s brother, brother- in-law, and two bodyguards and held them for ransom. That wasiprobably the true beginning of the Gallo-Profaei War, such as it was. ‘The war didn’t stare off with much in the way of fireworks. Gallo’s victims were released unharmed when Profaci promised payment. He didn’tfollow through, of course. Instead, he ordered a Gallo enforcer murdered. Then, Lary Gallo (Crazy Joe’s brother) received an invitation to meet and receive the first payment. What he got instead was a noose around the neck. Luck was with Gallo, however; passing cop asked what was going on and Profaci’s soldiers shot at the cop, giving Gallo time to get free. The Gallo-Profaci War wasn’tasexciting as, say, the Castellammarese War. The highlight was when theGallobrothers, holed up in their President Street bunker, saved a family from a nearby building that burst in flames one night. Joe Gallo and Joe Profaci both lefe the war for reasons entirely uriconnected with it. Gallo wound up in prison on an extortion charge, and Profaci died of canceriin June of 1962. Both sides claimed victory in war. It's always hard to: admit that nobody won. ‘The Banana War With Profaci,dead and the Gallos crippled, control of the! Profaci family passed to Joe Maggliocco,Profaci’s aforementioned brother-in- law. He wasn’t exactly a terrifying figure; he was weak and sick much of the time. Meanwhile, Tommy Lucchese’s family was still going strong, and Carlo Gambino was gaining power as well. [t wasn’teither of these figures, however, who would make the next move. Joseph “Joe Bananas” Bonanno was the don of the smallest family in New York, but he had fingers in every pie from Brooklyn to the Caribbean. He, like Genovese before him, set his sights on ultimate rule over the Mob (don't these people ever learn?) and set out to kill Lucchese, Gambino, Buffalo boss Steve Magaddino, and the Los Angles boss, Frank DeSimone (that DeSimone was even added to the list was something he might have found flattering, were he not so terrified. After Bugsy Siegel was killed and his bodyguard Mickey Cohen took over mostofhisrackets, though DeSimone was nominally CHAPTERONE ADISTINGUISHED HISTORYaA_A_A_A_A__A__A__A__A__A_A__ a 2 in charge, Cohen didn’t even pay him tribute much of the time. Indeed, the West Coast Mob is often called the “Mickey MousMafia”). Bonannoneeded help for such an ambitioussundertaking.— the phrase “biting off more than you can chew"leaps readily to mind — and went to Maggliocco. The new Profaci family boss, in tur, gavetthe contract toa rising start in the family, Joe Colombo. Colombo was a survivor, and he réckoned his ‘odds of survival were much better if he betrayed Bonaiinoand Maggliocco to their intended victims. The couneil summoned both of them: Maggliocco showed up and begged for his life. The council figured (correctly) that he was too cowardly to conceive the plot and let him live. He died of a heart attack a few months later. In reward for his honesty, Colombo was granted leadership of the Profaci family, making him the youngest American rmafioso to gain such a distinguished position. Bonanno, on the other hand, didn’t appear before the council. It didn’t help for long, as he was abducted off the street at gunpoint in October of 1964%and kept prisoner by Magaddino for nearly tw0 years (at the time, of course, he was presumed dead). In the meantime, his family split down the middle. The council put a loyal mobster named Gaspar DiGregorio at the head of the Bonanno family, while many of Bonanno’s men put their loyalty in Bill Bonanno, Joe Bananas’ son. The two sides went to war, racking up a decent bodycount but with neither side really winning much in the way of decisive victories. When Joe finally reappeared, he jumped into the war, guns blazing (breaking a promise to the council that he'd accept the council’s choice, which had changed from DiGregorio to Paul Sciacca, and go retire in Arizona). Bonanno probably could have won the war. He was shrewd and effective, as were his soldiers, and the bodies on the Sciacca side mounted more quickly than on Bonanno’sside. In 1968, however, fae intervened — Bonanno suffered a heart attack and dropped out of the war, retiring to Arizona and retaining only his western interests. Sciacea took control of his holdings in New York, for a time (Sciacca was demoted in 1970). And of course things continue on like this, but there's a notable exception here, right? Where's Dominic Cardona, Jr., anyway? I've seen ‘WORLDOF DARKNESS MAFIA him pop up twice, once when he told his story about Capone, and once in the basement of Joseph Barbara’s house in Apalachin. Of course, T know your beef with him, but as that happened in 1980, I'll assume that this history's enough. He's not an important figure, Mark. He wronged yyou, and as you had the opportunity to finish him ‘and didn’t, I think its up to you to come out here and do it. I'll act as backup for you, if you'd like. Pve seer’@ardona around the wharves justlately, as I said earlier. He seems to frequent the same places I do (of course, I've been hanging around some Mafia-esque places of late, looking for info that I can’t find in books) ‘Anyway, let me know if you still need more info. Or, just fly out here and we'll talk face to face. —Jeny The Next Generation Ireceived yourletter yesterday. Allright, Mark, youasked for it. Here’s the rest of the Mob's history, from the early 60s to modern days, but Pll warn you aboutsomething. Asthe FBlandother enforcement agencies get smarter (and better equipped) with respect to catching criminals (witness the Donnie Brasco affair, which I'l discuss) the Mafia responds by lying its’ collective ass off. There's a lot of misinformation floating around out there, much of it in the hands of the low-level soldati, so don't be too surprised if something that you read here today gets contradicted in the news tomorrow. Now, admittedly, my home recipe for truth —arote Lcall “Truth in Advertising” — does allow me to sift through the press-induced crap, but using it on newspapers leaves a bitter taste in my mouth (literally, since part of the ritual requires me to sip adrink flavored with ink). So, perhaps what's here isabitmore true than what youmightread elsewhere. Another Canary In 1962, a low-level punk named Joseph Valachi, who had worked under Maranzano’s organization, and then Luciano's and finally Genovese’s, found himself doing 15 to 20 for drug trafficking. Worse, there were rumors circulating that he wasan informer, and hiscellmate happened to be Vito Genovese himself. Genovese markedAA _A_A_A_A_A_A_A_A__A__A__a__A_a_a_s_a__ al trebhald Valachi for death. After surviving three attempts, on his life, Valachi mistook a prisoner for an assassin sent to kill him and beat the poor guy to death with a pipe Now facing a murder rap and a life sentence, Valachi sang for his life. The FBI surrounded him. with guards and he g mony. But unlike Kid Reles, who gave testimony in minute and correct detail, Valachi told stories that often contradicted each other. Plus, he wasn’t very bright —he refused to believe that non-Italians held any real power in the Mafia, even ansky had been aMob ferred to Genovese as the * but I've already discussed how that ower turned out. achi’s testimony might have made for good commonly used monikers: La Cosa Nostra, or “our thing.” sionally used the phrase in casual conversation, and it was never really used ion as a whole. Valachi, at way. This, in turn, re the org however, did use it MY the head/of the FBI (who for 30 Edgar Hoover years had insisted that there ), a chance to redeemthimself. There was tio Mafia, he said, because it was called La Cosa Nostra and the FBI had been investigating and infiltrating them fora number of years now. Sure, Edgar. Nice dress. Infiltration of the Mob was, in fact, only a few years away, but we'll get there The FBI started going after the Mafia, bur not with any real energy. The only reasons Hoover made an attempt at all were because he'd been embarrassed by the whole debacle — the old G Man hated bad press — and because Attorney General Robert Kennedy kept hounding him to do it. Hoover based many of his initiatives on Valachi’s testimony, however, which meant the Lansky and his ill were safe (for the time being). However, Kennedy wasn’t quite so shortsighted and came up with some interesting tactics. One was astatute stating that ifa defendant testified to gain immunity, he couldn't cite the Fifth Amendment to avoid self-incrimination (which only makes sense). ras no Mafi (GHAPTERONE:A DISTINGUISHED HISTORYWhatever the vetacity of Valachi’s testimony, it helped the law. By 1966,more of New York’smobsters had been jailed than in the previous 30 years. Strange Days Blame iton the Red Scare, the fapidadvance of technology, or just the heat, but some odd things have happened in recent decades. Some of those have involved organized crime. Kennedys: The Kenftedy family hashad problems with.the Mafia for decades, right back to Boston, when the Giovanni family backed Francis Milliner against Timothy Kennedy (reportedly, the Milliners ‘continue this vendetta to this day, to the point that they bought the Kennedy mansion out from under them and then leased the damned thing back to them). Probably the one that gave them the most trouble was Bobby Kennedy, though. Robert Kennedy, as I mentioned, was U.S Attorney General from 1961 to 1967, but had been after the Mob for longer than that. Throughout the Teamsters Union issues, when Jimmy Hoffa was hiring Mafia thugs right and left, Kennedy was there trying to get it sorted out. When he became attomey general, he took a cattle prod to Hoover to get him moving (not that it helped much). Past officials liked to make ashow of going after the Mob but were often bought or gave up on the fight when the publie’s interest shifted. Robert Kennedy didn't, andin 1968 (afterhe'd resignedas attorney general) he got shot for it in the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. ‘Supposedly, a Palestinian named Sirhan Sirhan shot Kennedy, but I don’t buy it. You know I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but there’s a lot of evidence suggesting that Sithan could not possibly have inflicted the wounds on Kennedy that he did, giving the way they were facing and so forth. Also, there’s the “Polka Dot Dress” theory: Reportedly, woman outside the hotel was exclaiming, “We shot him!” after the assassination. Ireally have no information on the truth of his assassination, but | doknow that Sirhan, as of 1997, ‘was professing innocence (at first he said he did it, theh he didn’t remember). He was sentenced todie, but he, like Charles Manson, was saved by the 34 WORLDOPDARKNESS:MAFIA decision that the death penalty was unconstitutional (thank God they came to their senses on that one). So, why has his story changed? Lies from the beginning, orsubtlemind control that’s now wearing off? Who knows? The other Kennedy, JFK, had his own Mafia issues, bur the Mobactually supported his presidency. Seems strange at first, but the story goes that Joe Kennedy (John’s father) had Mob ties himself, and asked for Sam Giancana’shelp in getting JFK elected. Why Giancana agreed, ifindeed he did, isamystery, but most likely, he though John would owe him favors and therefore get Bobby to back the hell off the Mafia once John was in office. As we know, it didn’t work out that way Buteither way, JFK beat Nixon by aridiculously slim margin in the 1961 election. Reports have Giancana’s boys stuffing ballot boxesand campaign funds from LCN channeled to Kennedy through (who else?) Frank Sinatra. Another interesting little twist concerns a woman named Judith Exner, a sometime “companion” of both Sinatra and Giancana. Sheactedasacourierof messagesbetween, Sam and John, and made phone calls to the president, completely unaware that she was being followed by the authorities (for herassociation with Giancana, as it turned out). So why didn’t any of this come to light at the time? Simple. The President was having an affair with a woman who had Mafia ties. The attorney general was the only one pushing for the FBI to crack down on the Mafia. The attorney general the president’s brother. Thicker than water, indeed. was, Every time the federal government gets cozy with the Mafia it ends up getting bumed. But it still happens sometimes; the government assumes that because mafiosi tend to be patriotic Americans, their motives for that patriotism are purely nationalistic. That's not true; most Mafia motives are selfish. The plots to assassinate Fidel Castro during the 1960s were no exception. Castro had driven Meyer Lansky out of Cuba, which meant thata large chunk of gambling dollars wasno longerhis. Lansky wasalso anti-Communist; criminals are, of necessity, capitalists, and usually conservative. The more free stuff, be it medicalA_A_A__A__A_A_s_s__A__A_A_»_4_A_4_ 4 sb a supplies, food, or whatever liberals wantjto give away, the less money ultimately ends up clanging hands, and that’s bad for business. Organized erime is very dog-eat-dog capitalist, to the point thatin Italy, the crime families will support fascist governmentsovercommunist (youcan make friends with fascists and help them with their takeovers, but real communists just want to give everything away). Anyway, when talk of taking Castro down, began to circulate, he offered support. Howard Hughes, another paranoid anti-Communist, put out a search for Mafia soldiers willing to help kill Castro. His people came up with Sam Giancana, the Chicago boss, and Johnny Roselli, one of his soldiers. Somewhere along the way, Florida boss Santo Trafficante, Jr. signed on as well. The Mafia actually scammed the CIA for years ‘on this matter. The Agency suggested machine- gunning Castro. Roselli pointed out that while that would be fine in Chicago, the getaway car might have trouble getting off the island. The CIA came up with poisons, explosives, bugs, and even a virus that would cause Castro's beard to fall off (thus destroying his image). None of these methods was ‘ever even attempted. Trafficante and company just ignored them, fed the CIA stories about their friends in “rebel forces” in Cuba, and squeezed the Agency for funds. Giancana took it beyond money and asked the CIA todo him a favor. That “favor” turned out t0 be bugging a hotel room so that Giancana could ascertain whether ornot Phyllis McGuire washaving, an affair with comedian Dan Rowan (Giancana considered McGuire his property). Unfortunately, Las Vegas deputies arrested the men doing the bugging (thinking they were burglars) and the whole incident had to be covered up. Giancana died in 1975, shot from behind by an unknown assailant while cooking sausages in. his home. Underworld lore holds that the CIA killed him and made it look like a mob hit to keep him. from talking — that indeed, many assumed Mafia hits over the next two decades were actually government-initiated. Of course, more forces than the government have interests in keeping the Mob down. After Giancana was shor, the police found his dog curled up under a table, shaking like a leaf. Ie didn’t growl or even react to anyone around it, and died later that day, apparently of shock. M you wonder who had it in for Giancana, doesn’t it? The lallan-American Image Problem Between Kefauver’s commission and Mario Puzo’s book The Godfather (and the films based on it), the Italian-American community wasn’t looking too respectable. Often, folks assumed that any Italian businessman had to be associated with the Mob (or La Cosa Nostra, pardon me). Not surprisingly, the Italian-American community was annoyed by these assumptions and, like many ethnic groups of the time, spoke out against persecution and discrimination. Whar’s funny is that it was the mobsters who organized much of the demonstrations. Joe Colombo was the most outspoken. He chose an interesting target for his vitriol: the FBI. Since the LCN revelation, the Feds had been dispersing a great deal of gangster-related information, which wasn’t doing the Italian- American people any good. So Colombo formed the Italian-American Civil Rights League. His people and area Italian merchants (sometimes under pressure from Colombo — ironic, no?) picketed FBI offices with signs and chants. He also insisted that everyone working for him hold down areal job. In a society that holds contempt for the average9-to-5 working man, you can imagine how well chat went over. Colombo was calling:t80 much: attention 10 himself and to the Mafia, ifindireetly, Things came to a head when he held a massive rallysin New York's ColumbusCircle with 50,000 in attendance. Colombo emerged a hero, for the moment. His movement had the effect he wanted: The FBI, the television networks, even Hollywood stopped equating “Italian-American” with “Mafia.” (I'm reminded of the classic defense against libel: [fone’s statements are true, i's not really libel. It’s the sam here, really —folks accusing Colombo’sorganization of being Mafia-backed were absolutely right, but that didn’t seem to matter.) The League intended to have another rally in June of 1971, but the underworld was hardly ‘supportive. Joe Gallo, recently out of prison, was threatening shopkeepers to stay open during the rally, sometimes during the same day thatColombo’s men threatened them to close. Carlo Gambino, too, withdrew his men from the League. Colombo didn’t seem to notice the problems, and showed up at the rally, just as he had the year before, smiling at the crowd. He was still smiling when Jerome Johnson, vVvvvvVvvVvVVVV VO OV OV Vawoweey, Vv CHAPTERONE. DISTINGUISHED HISTORYAA_A__A__A__A__A__s__A__A__A__A__A_4__A__4_A_4_a__ ‘wearing reporter credentials, stepped up to him and shot him in the head, three times. Colombo’s bodyguards immediately shot the young man. ‘Colombo wasn’tkilled outright, but lingered in coma for seven years before finally dying. But the question remained: Why had Johnson, a black man, shot a Mafia boss? The stories Vary, but one makes sense. Joe Gallo, you'll remember, had connections in the black crime comfmunity and could easily have called in the hit. Gallo, at the timejewas demanding recriminations from back during the Profaci-Gallo War, and so had the motive. He lso would have known thatwhile none of his Italian men could get close to Colombo, a black reporter certainly could. ‘There’sanotherstory in circulation that may or may not be true, but it’s interesting. The tale goes that Gambino went to Colombo and ordered him tostop fooling around, that he was generating too much heat by antagonizing the FBI. Colombo responded by spitting in Gambino’s face. So, did Gallo whackColombo of hisown accord, or did Gambino take out the contract? No way to know. Thelauthorities, while not at all sorry to see Colombo g6, had trouble determining who was head of the family. In fact, the Colombo family leadership would remain in nearly constant flux from the 70s on\ RUC 1970 saw the passage of the RICO Act — the Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act. It allowed courts to sentence bosses to long prison stretches if they could prove a pattern of incriminating activity throughout a business or string of inesses. You can probably see the problems already; RICO was vague, slightly unconstitutional (as it legalized guilt by association in some ways) and in the 70s, juries weren't convicting people with it. About the most success ithad was in 1972 Boston, when several members of the Giovanni organization (who are still around, they're just better at hiding than any of the major families) wentup on RICO charges. Idon’t have the results handy, but I do remember reading that none of those tried did any time. I don’t recall if that was because they weren't convicted or if their boss rubbed them out after the trial But apart from that trial, RICO didn’t get much use until the 1980s, when it would be used to prosecute not only mobsters, but striking workers and picketers. Obviously, the law still needs further definition. Donnie Brasco His real name was Joe Pistone, and he was an FBI agent with a unique assignment. He was sent undercover infithe)Mafia, and remained so from 1976 until 1982. His cover wasn't really blown, either: He was given a contract on a man’s life, and the Fibbies decided it wasn’t in the spirit of upholding the lawto letanagent commit premeditated murder. So, they withdrew him from duty and he spent the next five years acting as a witness in trials, putting nearly 100 mobsters away. Of course, there’s a contract out on the man’s life. Open-ended, $500,000 and climbing yearly. It’s never been fulfilled — no one’s ever gotten close. Why not? Well, for a number of reasons. For one thing, the man’s not stupid and takes precautions to keep himself safe. For another, he has friends he doesn’t even know about. And those friends make sure that, one way or another, Pistone is one lucky guy. Changing Times Everything moves in cycles, right? As the old mafiosi died or were imprisoned, others stepped up to take their places. As older rackets fell to the wayside, the Mob found new ones. ‘New Business "Sex sells,” goes the adage, and the Mafia knows it. Pornography became a best friend to the mob, as easily reproduced movies, photos and books began appearing with greater frequency. For a long time, it was a niche market; everybody drank, but very few folks were interested in porno (or, at least, would spend money on it) And then the 1960s rolled around and the Supreme Court made some rulings that left law enforcement confused as to what pornography really was. It was illegal, theoretically, but hard to prosecute successfully (and cops had better things to do, anyway). The Mob recognized a gold mine, and sleazy bookstores and porn i 36 VV eV Va OV Van VV ev oY T WORLDOPDARKNESS:NAPIAAAA _A__A__A__A__A_A 44s _s__4_4_4 4 1 =! theaters began popping up. The other advantage to this was that since much of the busiriess was cash-based and therefore anonymous, the Mob could report inflated numbers of books and movies sold and thereby launder money from other operations. Every now and then, someone tries to stamp out pomography. Giuliani tried it recently in New York. Youknow what? Itnever works. People have been interested in watching, reading about, and seeing pictures of sex for centuries if not longer, and it really doesn’t hurt anyone (until you start getting into rape and snuff flicks and kiddie porn, of course). Whenever the heat turns up, the sex industry goes further underground fora while, and then just edges its way into public view, a foot at atime, until they're doing business on every street comer as usual. The Mob knows the score, the pornographers know the score, everybody seems toknow thescore except the repressed individuals who want to wipe out the “smut.” Another profitable venture cropped up in 1964 and continues to this day, and once again, the Mob has the federal government to thank. When the shocking revelation that cigarettes are bad for you came to light, the Feds thought it would be a good idea to tax them, since maybe then people would decide it was’ too expensive and quit (apparently, they hadn't spend any significant time around a smoker, or they'd know better). Just as with alcohol, the Mob realized that they could getcigarettes cheap inone place (North Carolina, as it happened) and sell them off in New York. Bootleg cigarettes aren’t as profitable as, say, bootleg liquor was way back when, butts certainly a good side business. And then there’s the narcotics business. Underworld mythology has it that the bosses had a code against narcotics. What that evolved into was a kind of “don’t ask, don’t tell” thing. Don’t tell the boss where the money is coming from, and he won't ask. And even that isn’t true, because all of the major families have their fingers in the drug trade somewhere along the line. They just won't admit it. The Old Guard The 70s and 80s saw the deaths of many of the familiar faces on the Mob scene. Here's a short list, just so you know where they went: ‘* Luciano died of a heart attack in 1962. He was allowed to come “home” for burial, and was interred in New York City. + Frank Costello died in 1973. His wife refused to allow mafiosiapthe funeral. * Meyer Lansky finally ran afoul of the law in 1970 and tried to flee to Israel under the Law of Return (anyone with a Jewish mother could claim citizenship). It didn’t work; the Israeli government rejected him and he was tried for income tax evasion in 1974. Unlike Capone, he fought it and won, and the law gave up on him. He died of natural causes in 1983 * “Crazy Joe” Gallo was gunned down in 1972 while dining with his family and friends, His sister vowed over his coffin that the streets would “run red,” and they did for several weeks thereafter. * Joe Adonis died of natural causes in Italy in 1972. He and Luciano didn’t remain close during their time in exile, though Adonis did attend Luciano’s requiem mass in Naples. ‘The New Mafia Luciano and crew took over the Mafia by being young and spry. The newest crop would do the same. A 60-year-old mamfacing a 30-year prison sentence is likely to tus because if he doesn’t, he'll spend the rest of his life in prison. But a younger man can do that time easily, and probably onlyserve a few years and get out early for good behavior. Thus, as the old guard died away, there were newer men ready to take the reins of power, usually in the time-honored way of killing one’s boss. This was how John Gotti, the “Teflon Don” or “Dapper Don,” took power in the Gambino family. Carlo Gambino himself died in 1976 of a heart attack, but before death, he named Paul Castellano as his successor. By tights, the better choice would have been Aniello Dellacroce, his underboss, but Castellano was Gambino’s brother-in-law, and family won out over competence (Don’t laugh, it happens all the time. Even in the presidency.). At any rate, Dellacroce took control of many of the family’s, operations in Manhattan, which kept things cool for a while. vvvvvvVvVVVVVY VYoVOV OV Vavamey, Vv (CHAPTERONE:A DISTINGUISHED HISTORY a wvA—s_s_A_s_s__s_s_»__s__s__A__s_s A an Dellacroce alsokkept the Young Turks in line. John Gotti, one of these Turks, was a tough and ruthless man who patterhed himself after Albert Anastasia, and might havémoved to take over the family sooner if it hadn't been for Dellactoce. Meanwhile, Castellano was grooming a man, named Thomas Bilotti to take overfohim. He even promoted Bilotti to the rank ofapo, making him Gorti’s equal. Gotti knew that when Dellacroce died, he was not long for the world unless he acted Aniello“Mr. Neil” Dellacroce died of canteer in early December of 1985. Exactly two weeks later, as Bilotti and Castellano stepped from a limo to enter a steak house, they were shot to death. John Gotti was later heard to wonder in FBI-bugged buildings who had killed them. Who, indeed? Atany rate, Gotti made the Gambino family more powerful than ever, beating several raps in the 80s for racketeering and other charges. And then, in 1992, his underboss, Sammy “The Bull” Gravano, sang. Gotti was convicted on RICO charges and sentenced to life without parole. Gotti’s songJohn Gotti, Jr., took over the family for his father; but lacked the senior Gotti’s savvy and general intelligence (another example of amily ties mucking upsa perfectly good operation). Meanwhile, the Genovese family had some interesting turns, foo. Vito Genovese himself died in prison in 1969, and leadership of the family was uncertain for a time. Finally, Carlo Gambino installed Frank “Funsi” Tieri as head of Genovese operations, and he did quite well, bringing back Genovese power and continuing to support Carlo Gambino. Indeed, when Gambino died in 1976, Tieri was probably the most powerful don in the country. Indeed, ifJohn Gotti was Albert Anastasia incarnate, some felt Frank Tieri to be Lucky Luciano reborn. Ruthless when he had tobe, Tieri was a moneymaker, and would advocate easy payment schedules for debtors who could pay back some, if not all, of their owed monies. Tieri died of natural causes in 1981, having beaten nine arrests in previous years. The last one, which resulted in a 10-year sentence, was handed down two months before his death. The score, as therunderworld likes to say, was 10-zip, Funzi. 38 WORLDOP DARKNESS: MAFIA For the next six years, the leadership of the family remained in uncertain hands. In. 1987, however, Vicente “The Chin” Gigante, whom you'll rememberas the guy who failed to kill Frank Costellosome years before, assumed control of the Genovese family. Gigante may have acted dumb, but he was a shitewd leader. Under his command, the Genovese family'eclipsed even the Gambinos under John Gotti. Gigantestook what he though were precautions toavoidprosecutions, mostly stumbling around his neighborhood in a bathrobe muttering to himself, figuring he couldn't be prosecuted if found incompetent. He was right; had he been found incompetent, he would not have been prosecuted. His ploy didn’t work, however, and in 1997, at the age of 71, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison. Dominick “Quiet Dom” Cirillo took control of the Genovese family. Crime Marches On Just lately, the ploy has been to claim that the Mafia isdead. It isn’t. A lot of powerful people pull stringsin LCN. Warsbreak out, police and politicos are bought —itall just isn’tas obvious as it was 30 years ago. Anyway, you'll notice I skipped Cardona’s unfortunate involvement with you and that botched Good Death in 1980, but | figure you know all about that. Look, you've convinced me. The guy is dangerous, probably taking orders from someone even more dangerous, he’s got to go. It won't be hard. Consider it done. —Jerry Treachery Got your last etter. It’s done; Cardona Jr. sleeps with the fishes, if you'll pardon my melodrama. Wasn't real enthused with your questions; the Mafia’s supernatural connections aren’t really my strong point. The Mafia also has friends in weird places — I've mentioned vampires occasionally, and even we take a hand, but I’m not going to tell you about thatba AAA _A_A_A_A AA AA 4 4 A 4 4 1 ot Mark, Why? Because you're a fraud. You're thing I Remember that “Truth in Advertisin, mentioned? It works on letters, too. Now, I don’t know what you've done with my friend, but Jido. know that you manipulated me into killingsomeone. That he needed to die anyway isnot the point. [am going to come and find you, and it will take some time, but believe me when I tell you it all comes back around. Sleep well. — Jerry Giamo ‘CHAPTER ONE: ADISTINGUISHED HISTORYMh nh ae Cae T Vin Vir Yoo aon ¥ a Vis Van vom 40 WORLDOP DARKNESS: MAFIA—s_A_A_A_A_A__A_s_ aA _A_A_A__A__s_4__s_4s_ Chapter Two: ade Jile mat He — Michael Corleone, The Godfather The following is a transcript of a recorded conversation between Don Antonio Cardona of Malta and his childe, Nicholas Romero. For reasons undetermined, only the voice of Romero appears on the tapes operators deny any mechanical failure and are at a loss to explain the discrepancy. Felice notte, Don Cardona. May I say again how ted we are that you are back with us after your longsleep? Your presence makesthe night brighter for all of us. Did youenjoy your reception? The effort involved in assembling the Orders of St. John after so many years was prodigious, but I felt that you would— My apologies, Don Cardona. You're absolutely right. The point, of course. Forgive me for wasting your time. Asper yourstandingorders, my sire, wehave been keeping a very close watch over your mortal family, giving them a bit of a boost here or a leg up there. Luca Brasi held a gun to his head, and my father assured him that either his braing— or his signature — would be on the contract. That's a true story. That's my family, Kay He ness ; Ll be delighted to know that they your absence, obtained a position of great as the core of the Maltese Family of. , during Merda. You do not know what has become of the Mafia during your time away, doyou?Itis—somewhat difficult toexplain, Don Cardona, and may tak time. Still, if you wish it Youdo! Allright, then. Here where we stand with, this thing of ours. The Families ofLa Cosa Nostra would, I think, be the place to begin easy system to describe concisely. The Maltese, for example, are but one of many great Families in a society that stands away from the light. It is not you'll pardon m unlike the Kindred themselves. much It’snot an descent into metaphor, entirely ao NN OY OY OY VOM eV VV nV V ov Vn, CHAPTER TWO: MADEMEN IN A WORLD OF DARKNESSConsisting, as it does, of multiple Famili Mafiaisnot aspecific unit, and never acts asa unified body. Instead, each Family is essentially an independent entity in a lar; gain, somewhat like our own clans among the Camarilla. society — Connections exist, levels of authority if you will Smaller Families answer to larger ones. The Gambino Family, for instance, holds a vast territory, but that is not to say.that other Families do not operate within. Rather, they receive permission from the Gambino to setup shopin exchange fora percentage of their profits. Sometimes, Families do not ask permission. Sometimes they poach on the territory of another Family, and then, ifnegotiations break down, ‘war. More on that inamoment, Don Cardona, if you'll indulge me Even the largest Families are not completely wutonomous. In, America, La Cosa Nostra has a governing council, less a royal court than a board of directors. It has many names, but the Commission is the most popular and will do as well as any. The Commission consists of the dons of the major Families. The Maltese, you will be pleased to note, are indeed powerful enough to have our own seat on the Commission, though we cannot truly be said to be amonig the greatest of the Families. Not yet, anyway In Sicily? No, Don Cardona, nothing quite like the Commission exists in the Old Country. Even there, though, the heads of the Families usually try to work things out at the table before taking to the streets. But the truth is, much as I may hate to admit it, the current power is with the American Mafia. Oh, the Sicilian Mafia is still larger proportionally, not icious. But Sicily is less numerically — and e simply—and pray youforgive meforsayingso important in the global arena, But where was I? Ah, yes. The power of the Commission is limited by consensus. Only when a majority of the Families agree can the Commission move forward; it has precious litele power if it eannot achieve some sort of majority decision. In the past, the American Mafia had enforcers, soldiers who did not answer to any specific Family. Youmay hear the name Murder, Incorporated, fom time to time. Still, the vast majority of the ides with Family soldiers. ts ability to reach a firepower r Pe Taam ES decades! Still, there has If may eat org ee RR aT Sr eRe Tee But as to specifies. The honorific “don, ener are eee is difficult, in these ea ee nea ome time sin others use ran a ose One era Ree eee reer Unread cet up Rec eget eoeeririre: er vrene nist ea ts of the Commission, fe The title is sometimes to refer to themselves when they hold power c post Literal, traditional meaning, I doubt eee) rcs Seen pphasis that I woul peters applied to the head of the Family, of course. The don of anyone could accurately claim the title of eape di tutti ca ne man to become the “boss of bosses.” ea eres orca meen all aTrevegss and a caporegime isa Lieutenant who is normally in "Incidentally, another less frequently used ttle forthe apodecima, | understand that this is the preferred term among the Giovanni; for some Sete tat oer emai A sgarvista is one of our soldiers; but more that piciotto is a lower-ranking soldier of the Famil the consiglier keeper; and the giovane d'homore, Personally, Idon’ Seer es Retire Oe ce en ESS eae et the joke. Caporegime is often shorted simply TU eee hey are not truly part Cra Drea aera eit end 2 T WORLDOP DARKNESS: MAFTA Verve mY VVVYVVVVYVVYVWYY VV V‘What all this boils down to, Don Cardona, is that the Families are limited by the dictates of the Commission only so far as they allow themselves to be. The Commission may mandate peace, for instance, but it takes only one dissatisfied don to shatter that peace. Sowe have these Families, which are entities unto, themselves, and the dons, who are the heads of those Familiesandsomewhatanalogousto theSicilian bafons and landowners you may remember, But.thete's a lot more yourust know about the Mafia'sfamily structure Fora number of reasons — not the least of which. isyourown particular familial feeding requirement — itisimporcant that you understand the use of the term “Family.” The core of any Mafia Family is indeed a network of blood relations. But this is only at the heart, Don Cardona. Not every member of the Genovese Family, for instance, bears the last name Genovese, or even one traceable blood link to them. Admittance into a Mafia Family can be earned, and requires no family ties at all in the traditional sense. Those who have been officially adopted into the Family in such a manner are called Made Men Becoming a made man is the aspiration of many young servants.and soldiers of the Families. Itrequires many years of loyal service, the ability to keep one’s mouth shutand put the needs of the Family first, and, in most cases, pure Italian ancestry. Most of our operatives never reach this esteemed level of acceptance; for those who do, itis the highest honor they might have hoped for. La Cosa Nostra has a long-standing cultural tradition behind it, of course. Not everyone, even an individual willing to operate above the law, has the proper mindset to become one of us. Most don't even. know how to try. A sense of persecution exists in ‘many of Italian blood, I think, Don Cardona. It stems from the lack of any just or effective government in. Ikaly forso many years. Although some of the younger generation wish to join us just for the power, most of us still have a sense of belonging to a true society, not justa profitable organization. It is a commitment toa way of life, not just ajob. We take care of our own, as wealwayshave,and thatisthe bestreason for becoming, part of the Family. Guys who are about to be made must undergo a very specific Initiation We have, of €burse, a cefemony for this. It would be nice if these could be/affairs of great pomp and circumstance, but Pmistite you see why we must keep themSecret. These€etemonies are normally held ina sideroomor the basement of another Family member. Tn attendance are many of the capos bastone and caporegimes of the Family, and often the don himself, The ceremofiy involves oaths of loyalty to the Family, including willingness to turn against even one’s own, blood at the order of the don and for the good 6f the Familyitself. You enter on your feet, the aspirant is told, and you leave only in a coffin. Theblood of the aspirant is taken from his trigger finger, and spread upon the picture of a saint, which is then burned — as will the aspirant’s soul, he is told, should.he ever betray the Family to which he is now pledged. Icis all very ritualistic, of course, Don Cardonaj but surely we of the Kindred know better than anyone. how powerful ritual can be. Race and Sex? An intriguing question, Don Cardonad¥es, I did mention that made men are almost always Italian. Were you to ask a random mafioso, you would no doubt be told that all made men are Italian. The real world, of course, is not so cut-and-dried. The Mafia, as a whole, is a racist organization — except when it isn’t. Many yearssback, our primary competitors were the Irish, not tomention the excess of Irish cops. The average sgarvista would hardly give a mick the time of day, except, of course, when they proved useful. The Irish gangs were fairly powerful in many neighborhoods, and some Families found it easier to work with them than war with them. Jews were the same: hated, exceptwhen they were necessary. Many of them were more highly educated in the old days than we were, and we took advantage of that, even if it meant working with them. Some of them—Meyer Lansky and Bugsy Siegel, for instance — became enormous figures in our ranks. Surely no ‘one could say they were not made in all ways that matter, Ie’s the same tonight. Most made men would preferthat the slants, kikes, niggers and spicsustkeep to their place as errand boys and expendable soldiers. Sure, now and again one of them mightprove himself, might drag himself up by his bootstraps, but it doesn’t happen often Nav VV ov ViGv OY VO OV OV VY ov 9Vrv nV: CHAPTER TWO: MADE MENIN A WORLD OF DARKNESS Th BSomething you might find interesting, Don Cardona, is that other Kindred among the Families seem to be of two minds on the subject. Does it matter ifa man was Italian before the Embrace? He’s dead now, and may even prefer to identify by clan rather than by nationality. Personally, Leould hardly care less, but I've known Kindred — that Sewer Rat Sannini in Jersey comes to mind — who'd rather shovea stake up their own ass and twit in the sunrise than admit a foreigner, living or undead, into the Family. Bastardo! Women have it... well, you could say better o worse, depending on how you look at it. You're never going to find a woman who officially holds a position of authority in a Family. Women are either wives or girlfriends of good Family men. The Families even havea tradition that Saturday nights are for the wives and Fridays for the mistresses, so there can be no chance of them funning into each other. t's not that they don’t know about each other, but appearances ‘must be maintained. Daughters and nieces are often married off to bring Families together, or to bring a usefull youngman into the Family. Theyare, in essence, trophies, tools and bargaining chips — not unlike in your own day, mijsire. Many mafiosi keep their wives and girlfriends ignorant of their activities, and these are relatively harmless. But some-of these women, those who know what happens behind elosed:doors.... porcoddio! I tell you, Don Cardona, I'd rather face a raging Lupine than the Wife or the mother of a Sgarvisia who isn’t getting wharshe feels isher due! Sucl’a woman often speaks with her husband's voice, and noone wants to show disrespect to the wife of his caporegime. So they can get things done, even going so far as to put out contracts, with no official backing atall. And ifthings go wrong, well, their husband's — orson's, or father's — reputation is often enough to protect them from the repercussions. Not always, of course, but often... Proper Behavior is a very big deal to good Family men. The Mafia has developed an intricate code of conduct, as, I think, would any organization this violent. Some of the young Turks — that is, the younger generation — are lesslikely tofollow the old ways. Ifanythingfinally bringsdown the Mafia, sie, itwill be these punks, and no outside enemy. Mark my words. But forgive me. Back to the subject at hand. For all that they're supposed to be equal, made men still don’t have it quite as good as actual blood relations of the don. Children, grandchildren, nephews, cousins — they'll get the best assignments, the greatest praise, the most authority. Most sensible Wwiseguys accept that as the way it is when they're inducted into the Family proper. Those who are less intelligent protest, or ty to remove the competition, and end up at the bottom of a slow-moving river in very small chunks. The point, though, is that they are expected to abide by the codes of behavior as strictly as actual blood relations, if not more so, even if they feel they receive less return for doing so. Family men are to be treated with respect. Whether blood relation or made man, it doesn’t matter, and never more so than if they outrank you. Men have been killed for lesser offenses than failing to show their capo the proper deference. Respect doesn’t stop there, either. Disrespecting aman’s wife, orhischildren, or God forbid his mother, are just as serious offens: Ie’s even expected — though it doesn’t always happen —thata good Family man will show his rivals proper respect. When meetingwith the representatives, ofanother Family, oreven with someone fromanother organization, it shows good breeding to stay polite. That doesn’t mean you can’t cave in their skull with abat when they turn around, but there’s no reason to be rude about it. Ie’susually wise tobe polite to the copsaswell, but that happens about as often as I go sunbathing. Made men and Family are untouchable. It doesn’t matter who you are. You could be a cop, some slob defending his daughter's honor, or even a loyal and favored giovaned honore. Doesn't matter; you do not kill a Family man. I've ordered wives, even children slain in retaliation for such things. It won'e do to set precedent The flip side of this is that a made man is under no. such restrictions. He can beat, steal, rape, kill, whatever he wants, and the Family will still come down hard on anyone who tries to come after him. Ofcourse, fhe gets too far out ofhand, the Family may [clears throat] remove him themselves. Nobody in our position likes unnecessary attention, afterall Procedures for dealing with other Family men do exist, should the need arise. By the strict rules of the Commission, you cannot whack — you are familiar with the euphemism “whack,” Don Cardona? Good. Well, you cannot whack a made man without first discussing the situation with the \WORLDOF DARKNESS:MAFIA VOWS v VVVVVVVYWVYY¥VYWW¥¥¥bosses of the Families involved — including the target's don! This is meant ro ensure that only the serious offenses, those that even the man’s own don cannot excuse, ate punished. This particular custom is honored as much in the breach as anything else. During war particularly, Family men, and indeed women and children, are slaughtered on a regular basis. Norisicuncommon for made men to simply resolve their grievances with a slashed throat and a dumped body. This is dangerous, since the Family will hold a grudge, and may take revenge decades later should the perpetrator of such a deed be rev ed. But in a life like this one, many that one more risk is of no consequence. wiseguys fe Above immutable law of and beyond even these, howe amily life. It is the code of Omerta You're almost certainly familiar with the term, Don Cardona. Literally translated, of course, itsimply means manhood. Tonight, it refers to so much more. Omertais about a man solving his own problems. Itmeans youdo not go to the police, but rather obtain justice with your own hands — of; at most, with the help ofthe Family. Iris where ourla¥e/hate relationship with vendetta comes from. But above all, omerta is about keeping one's mouth well and firmly shut. Itis the code of silence followed by all the Families, everywhere. Whatever else the dons may disagree on, whatever conflicts may a is the one immutable law of our way of life or unlife Not unlike the ) No crime is greater than br treason, a betrayal of Family, of blood and Christ. On thestreet, they say thatsomeone betraying us like this is flipping. The United jovernment has an entire branch of law enforcement, the Witness Protection Program, designed toprevent informantsand traitors fromreceivingtheirjustpunishments. Sometimes it even works, but short of a lifetime of hiding, no way exists forsuch afigtiodi puttanatoescape the consequences of his actions. No don will protect such a traitor, even if it’s his own grandson. Wee NaN VAY aN ON VV Ge Ve nv Wear ven ven CHAPTERTWO: MADE MER INA WORLD OF DARKNESS = 4%Vendetta is almost as important to us as omerta itself. As often as monetary matters or territorial disputes, itis vendetta thatdrags Families nto warafter war, spilling gallons of precious blood into the'gurters. Tam sure that you, site, know vendetta all too well from your own breathing days. It is the same tonight. Blood must be avenged, justice must beserved. Aneye foran eyejas it were. I know of entire villages in Sicily that have been stripped of every male inhabitant between the ages of 12 and 60 by vendetras that ran unchecked These days, the Commission usally steps in should a vendetta-born war drag on for too long, and the Commission usually has enough of the local Families behind them to force a settlement. Still, wounds fester, and many new wars are the result of old vendeteas that resurface after years or even decades of dormancy. Justice must often wait — this is why vendetta took the place of duels in our culture —butit must neverbedenied. It’spractically a religion to us. Speaking of Religio It’s kind of @funny thing, really, but the vast ‘majority of the Mafia is still devoutly Catholic, even after — 1 — no, Don Cardona, | meant no offense! 1 know that you're Catholiel:P-perhaps I misspoke! Yes, Don Cardona. You're absélutely right; I should think abouthow I say things beforelsay them. M-my humblest apologies. What I meant to say, of course, is that the prevalence of Catholicism might seem strange to an ‘outsider who does not understand our ways. Religion is not as great a part of daily life for most of the kine now as it was in your time, but a preponderance of Family men still rake Communion and confession. 1 know this is something you will be pleased to hear. Faith, however, is not always easy to reconcile with our less socially acceprable enterprises. I know that many mafiosi feel that they are committing no sin, that everything they do is done in defense of the Family; surely God will not punish them fordefending their own blood! Others, less convinced of God’s understanding of their let us say, unique world view, simply take the precaution of confessing on a very frequent basis. That Nosferatu I mentioned earlier, Sannini? I understand that he takes confession no fewer than three times a night. Must have some truly weighty matters on his soul, no? AAs _A__A__A__s_sA_4 A _4_A_4_A_A_A_4_, Lamalso quite certain, Don Cardona, that many of the"faithful” among our ranks are simply maintaining appearances, and care nothing for the teachings of God and Christ, but the Lord will judge them in his own ways, will he not? All of this — the Families, our codes of behavior, all of it — brings me, finally, to War The purpose of the Mafia, the cause behind everything we do, is the advancement of the welfare of the Family. Yes we commit crimes, yes we get rich, yes we kill, but it’sall for the comfort and the safety of our own blood. Unfortunately, what is good for one Family is not necessarily good for another, and then we have Bloodshedinthe Mafia American movies, set in the years of Prohibition, have us waging open warfare on the streets, Tommy guns blasting away at each other, careless of who might get caught in the crossfire. It was not then, and it is not now, a wholly accurate image, but it’s pretty close, nonetheless. You did not see the worst of it, even before your sleep, Don Cardona. You saw the feudshere,on Malta and in Sicily, but you never saw the bloodshed in the New World. Tonight, the Tommy guns have been replaced with Mac-10s and AK-47s, but the wars are the same. It is an unfortunate thing when war comes. The Families can accomplish so much when we work together. In times of peace, a member of any Family is almost as close to a wiseguy — in theory — as to his ‘own Family. They're to be treated with respect, we help each otheroutin a jam. Ir’salmost like the Mafia, at those times, really is one big Family. Tt never lasts, though. For some reason, despite the expense, despite the wasted lives, war seems to be easier for us than peace. It’s our own fault, in a way. ‘We've built a society within a society predicated on the notion that we take what we want, when we want it,sothatourfamiliesmay thrive. Isitany wonder that wwe prove unable to rein in those impulses even when our brothers and sisters hold the thing — property, money, whatever — we desire? ‘We do fight on the streets at times, slaughtering entire crowds with drive-by shootings or cheap explosives. This draws attention, though, and ay 46 WORLDOP DARKNESS MAFIA V@wwemvvyvVVVVYVVYWV¥¥w¥iYVY Vv ifattention is never good. It makes the other Families look our way. It makes the police and the government look our way. Is bad for business. By the time a war reaches this level of uncontrolled violence, it's only a matter of time until the Commission, the other local Families, or the Feds puta stop to it. With prejudice. So how do we war against our enemies, when, prolonged conflict is bad for everyone? Primarily, we have to be very precise in our Choice of Targets A bit of artfully applied violence is, obviously, far more effective than trading barrages on the freeway, and it draws less notice. We've found over the years that two specific sorts of hits, when done properly, effectively cripple our enemy's ability to operate. We'll hit other targets aswell, of course, but these are the most effective. Assassination of high-ranking members ofthe rival Family is far moreefficient than blasting awayat their button men. Of course, hitting the don, or even many of his immediate family or his capos bastone, is never easy. Such men are well protectedatall times.Furthermore, it is this tactic more than any other that invariably leadsto vendetta, and further ill will— ifnocbloodshed —down the road. Still, fwe can remove those who are most skilled from our rivals’ top echelons, we can destroy their ability to counterattack. Your best bet is probably the second tier, so to speak. Advisors, lieutenants, assistants. I heard about a war back in Sicily in which, one of the Families managed to take out damn neat every advisor the don had. They never touched him. or his immediate family, but the guy didn’t have any idea where to go rom there. Turned out that it was his, siovane d’honore who had all the tactical know-how. Fail in an attempt like this, though, and we've turned what was simply business into personal affair, and those are inevitably far mote bloody. Something thats often easier to accomplish than assaulting the opposing Don and his immediate underlings is Destruction of the Enemy's Businesses War is bad for business even under the best circumstances. With the outpouring of capital required to hire muscle and purchase additional armaments and ammunition, it’s an expensive prospect. Now imagine trying to do that, Don Cardona, without money flowing in, to match that flowing out. The Mafia has an enormousfaumber of profitable activities, butthe vast majorityofthem are unfortunately static. Thavis, they require fixed locations in which to operate, and it isn't tooidifficult for a rival Family to eam which are outs and vice versa. Much of the “random violence” that occurs in a Mafia war isn’t fandom at alle Every business we cripple deprives our rival Family of income, and reduces its ability to battle. Many such wars are won in exactly that fashion. One of the Families simply couldn't afford to keep fighting any more Ofcourse, the other Families are trying to do this same thing to us while we're trying to de ito them. ‘Sometimes, the best way to win is not even selecting ‘ouf targets, but in Getting Someone Else ta Fight for Us Iedoesn’t matter how big the Family, none of the bosses wants to waste manpower, or to lose their soldiers and their own relatives. Fortunately,/the Mafia has other resources at its disposal, servants and catspaws who can take the risks for us, Freelancers can be quite useful, in the right situations. If we need to hit someone, but we absolutely eannot afford to have it traced back to the Family, otitside talent is the way to go. Of course, hiring a murderer comes with its own risks. We have to be certain that this is someone professional enough both to get,the job done and to keep his lip buttoned if he gets pinched. That's actually the single biggest reason the dons don't use freelancers often. They're not as reliable as Family. ‘Some wiseguys have the habit of whacking their hired guns after freelance job, just to make sure they don’t talk, but if word of that kind of thing gets around, nobody else is going to work for you You also have to be sure that this guy hasn't already been paid off by the other side as a means of getting close to you. While it’s not too common, I've known of a few Family men who went to a meeting with a freelance hitman to negotiate a contract only to find out too late that they were the contract. Finally, there’s the money. Hitmen don’t come cheap—or, more accurately, those who come cheap aren’treliable. And if you're going tobe spreading the money around anyway, there’s no point in hiring a hitman when you can just bribe the a cae em Om a a me a ak a ae aa CHAPTER TWO:MADE MEN IN A WORLD OF DARKNESS = od= 8 Police and Government Officials Some copsare dirty enough that we can actually pay them tocarry out hits. Believe me, there’s nothing better than getting a pig to whack someone for you. Oddsare the guy you're hitting isahoodlum himself, soit won't be toohard tomake it looklike a righteous shooting. Cops can get close to people your normal muscle couldn’t get near, too. Hell, they can pall the mark over for speeding, if nothing else. But even when we can’t find a cop willing to go quite that far, there are all kinds of ways we can use them — and the city — to handle our business. As I said, we usually know where a rival’s establishments are. Maybe we know that he stores some of his hot merchandise in the back of that clothing shop downtown, or maybe we've learned that the dealers working out of the crack-house on 43rd are on his,payroll. A police raid can bust up that sort of operation just as well as any hit, and there's a lot less risk to us. All it takes is an anonymous tip and maybe a healthy bribe or two to make sure it’s taken care of properly. This is a very fine line to walk, though, Don Cardona. You know how the Familiesfeel about being ratted out to the ops, and siccing the pigs on an enemy's business comes damn close to violating the code’of omerta. It’s an. acceptable tactic if you've got ‘a pretty good handle on the cops involved, and if it can be done without anyonettalking. Butswho needs the cops? Your rival runs a restaurantin Little Italy? Bribe the héalth inspector to shut itdown. Have your people in city setyicesarrange blackouts and telephone disconnects that impact your enemy's operations. You can even have building and construction permits revoked, if you know the right eats to whisper in That's something a lor of dead wiseguys failed to consider: Sometimes a telephone and the voice of authority is far more dangerous than a badge and a gun. It’s what I've been saying about respectability; the Families have to at least keep up the appearance of it or else we can’t operate. There was, just for example, one particularly irritating wiseguy a few years back —I don’t even remember his name now — who was trying to muscle in on Cardona territory in upstate New York. We had other issues pressing at the time, and couldn’ereally afford the manpower to go to war with his crew. The copscouldn’t get him, because they didn’t have enough evidence for a warrant. \WORLDOPDARKNESS-MAFIA Thesthing is, Don Cardona, state and county judges/need extra cash, same as everyone else. If you've got a judge on your payroll, you don’t need evidence. You get him to issue the warrant, the cops fare more than happy to handle the rest. The guy who ‘was challenging us could tell you personally how effective a tactic it can be, except that he was sadly knifed to death in his cell about a year after his arrest. A shame, really. Finally, ifyougetreally desperate foran expendable pawn, you can always use one of the Empty Suits ‘An empty suit, Don Cardona, is a gangster- wannabe. Theseare the jackasses who think that they can hang with the wiseguys because they happen t0 know some of our slang, or because their neighbor's cousin has roommate who once blew a made guy for a 10-spot. Normally they just hang around our street level operators, so as long as they don't actually ‘endanger a businessor get too damn annoying, we just ignore them. Every nowand again, one of them learns a little too much, draws too much attention or just annoys a sgarvista on a bad day and winds up in a shallow hole. Butonce ina while, if youapproach them withan ‘opportunity to “prove themselves,” you can get them to do some of your shit work. Maybe they can watch your rival's business for a while, or earry in a package that containsan unhealthy amount of high explosive Itdoesn’teven have to be somethingillegal. I actually had one guy washing my car and mowing my lawn for almost a year, just hecause | —or rather my ghouls — kept promising that he had bigger stuff coming if he proved he could follow orders. You've got to work through channels with these guys, since you can’t count on them to keep quiet if, ormore likely when, they're caught by either the cops or another Family. But hey, the job's done, so who cares what happens to these busones afterwards? ‘The Endofine War usually comes under one of three circumstances: One of the Families has drained its resources dry and just can’t fight anymore, or enough of the people at the top of one of the Families have been whacked that the survivors need to get out while they still can, or else the Commission or the other local Families decide they've had enough and put their foot down.‘Sometimes entire Families are destroyed by these wars, but once they're over, things usually get back to normal, even if it takesa while. Things aren't quite so easy when we're battling Other Criminal Organizations The unfortunate truth, Don Cardona, is that thé’ Mafia is not the only organization of its sort inthe world tonight. While we have been. ableto reach some accommodation with several ofthem, there can beno truce with others. Our influence doesn't overlap much, but where it does, [foresee only war until one side or the other concedes defeat. Neither side has conceded as of yet, sire The worst are the damn slants. The Chinese Triads and the Japanese Yakuza have thrived in the United States recently. So longs they stayed in the Orient, we had no beef with them, but now they're messing with our operations all up and down the West Coast and in Europe. They brought some of those damn Cathayans with them, too, which makes things even harder for Family Kindred, buethar’snot the point. The pointis that these guysare ruthless. Yes, we're ruthless —we'll kill you, your family, your friendsand your dog if you mess with us. But the Triads'll blow away everyone walking down your street just to get to you, and they'll do it because you looked at them wrong. If we kill a clean cop or some poor bystander who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, it’s because we didn’t have a choice; again, it draws too much attention. Slants don’t care, though: They got their people more intimidated than we ever did, and they don’t give a damn who knows what they're doing because nobody's going to talk. So the problem with warring with these guys is that we've got to be just as stupid as they are. We've got to him them as hard, and as frequently, as they hit us—and that draws the heat. Between the Yaks and the Triads on the one side, and the cops and the Feds we attract by fighting them on the other, the entire war is kind of a no-win situation, but there's no way we're backing down from these clowns. No; fuck ’em all in the ear. The slants don’t even respect their own neighborhoods, Don Cardona. They fuck their own people worse thananybody. They're heavy intopeople- smuggling. They'll bring their own over here then force them intoslavery. Bastardos. Beyond that, they're mostly wrapped up in extortion and smuggling narcotics, electronics and counterfeit merchandise, so even when weicome out séeond-best in a war, we can usually Keep our other operations in the area — gambling and whatneu= running smoothly. Stil, ‘one afits is going to have to go eventually. ‘Once you're fully up and around, sire, you also may ‘want to considerinvestigating the Cathayan connection. They started showing up in numbersalong the American East Coast nét long back. Anybody who tries to tell you that they afen’tasheavily involved in the Triads and the Yakcaswe arein the Mafia isa damn liar. We actuallyhad cone captured for a while, but — wel, let's just say he escaped before we could make him alk. [cangive youthe full details later if you want, but its not pretty Anyway. TheSouth American cartelsarealmostasbad. Things swere fine when all they were trying to do was smugale ‘drugs into the US. and make some green off it. Hel, we were one oftheir main distributors fora while. Then they got greedy, decided they had todo everythingthemselves, acquire their own territories, and ical hit the fan The cartels are kind of like us in that they're a bunch of independent groups, not one organization We can still work with some of them, mostly the sinallerones who know they can't make iton their own. Theyprovide the product, wesel it. Simple,convenient; everyone's happy But the big boys don't play nice. The Medellin and Cali cartels used to be some of the biggest. They've got other up-and-comers taking their place now. They want their own territories in the U.S. — and Europe too, though you don’t hear about that as often — and they dlon’t care who was there first. They're like the Triads when it comes to war, too. You remember me telling you that the young Turks in our own ranks don't respect the old ways? The cartels, the Triads, most of these newer organizations, really; they'e all Turks, even the old ones. [e's ugly, Don Cardona, very ugly. ‘We don't have so much of a problem with the others. The Irish still have some gangs in the States and in Europe, but they'renot what they were. Hardly even competition anymore, really. We don't tangle much with the Jamaican drug posses, and we've come to some interesting arrangements with the Eastern European factions. What Sort of Arrangements? ‘Well, I wasn’t going to get into that yet, Don Cardona, but if you really want to know. vvVvwwywye-yYTVYTVYVYVYVYVYVYWYVYVYYV V = CHAPTERTWO:NADEMENINA WORLD OPDARKNESS 49